Blizzard
by Side1ways
Summary: Kendall's life isn't what it seems from the outside. Along with the responsibility on his shoulders, he also learns what it's like to feel loved from someone new. Mix that in with his 'other life,' and Kendall finds himself in one of the most dangerous situations he's ever been in before. How will he cope with this new found danger, especially when the fate on the city is on him.
1. Chapter 1

**Hi Guys and welcome back to another test chapter 😜 So, as you all probably know by now, I like to upload a test chapter so that I can gauge your opinions on stuff, and this is my latest one. I don't want to give too much away here, so I'll let you crack on with it**

* * *

'My name is Kendall Knight, and I'm an Orphan. My Dad died when I was only 4 years old, leaving me and my pregnant mother. 5 months later, and my baby sister was born, at least that's what I was told. See, my mother died while giving birth to her, meaning that my sister and I were separated from the get-go. With no other family, my baby sister and I were placed in a orphanage in Ely, Minnesota but the two of us were quickly separated. See, everyone who adopts seemed to want a baby, and my sister fitted that role perfect, yet no one wanted a 4 year old boy. So, the two of us were separated and since the family didn't want my sister to know that she was adopted when she grew up, they asked the orphanage to keep all the information locked away, meaning that I have no clue who my sister actually is, or where she went. So anyway, I grew up in that home and at the age of 18, I was giving a small college fund that my parents began to make for me in our few short years. With the help from the state, I was able to move to Spirit City, and attend SCU, where I got a degree in Glaciology, mostly focusing on Glaciology. Oh, and there's one other small thing. I'm a superhero, well I possess abilities that would probably classify me as such, but I won't get into that right now'

At least that's what Kendall wanted to say to the guy in front of him. Instead he went for, "I would describe myself as hard-working, cheerful and responsible" causing the guy to nod as he noted it down.

"Well, from what I can see from your resume, you're definitely qualified for the job" he joked, causing Kendall to chuckle along with him, knowing it looked best. "I like you Kendall, so I'm going to give you a chance. You're hired"

"Thank you sir" he said, as he stood up and reached out to shake his hand. "You won't regret this"

"I hope I don't. You'll start tonight. Be here for 6 for your first shift."

"I'll see you then" he replied, shaking his hand once more before walking out of his office and into the coffee shop where he'd be working tonight. As he stepped out of the building, he took a deep breath, a massive smile on my face knowing that he'd finally have some more money to spend.

That's when his phone started beeping.

Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out the device, to see that he'd been alerted by the local news station, Dispatch Weekly. The notification read 'Fire on Wharf Route, emergency services are on route' causing him to break into a jog as he headed for the closest alleyway.

"Perfect timing" he mumbled to himself, making sure that no one was around as he ran into one of the secluded corners. He was quick to strip out of his clothes, taking off his shirt and trousers, leaving him in his white spandex suit with a dark blue snowflake in his chest. ' _I really need to update my design'_ he thought to himself as he slipped his mask over his head. Shaking that thought out of his head, he shoved his actual clothes into his backpack and froze it in the corner, before he set off running once again.

Freezing the ground in front of him, he was quick to gain some momentum, using that the gradually climb higher and higher in this city-scape. It wasn't long before he was skating at about the high of an average one story building, and although it was difficult to see through all of the skyscrapers, he was just able to make out the burning inferno. He was quick to make his way over there, swerving in between buildings, as he listened to the traffic beneath him, as well as the awe of the people he was skating above and before long, he had reached his destination, seeing how the fire service had already arrived. He was quick to get down to street level, skating in next to the marshal.

"What's the sitch?" he asked, causing the marshal to glance over at him as he finished ordering his men about.

"There's still about 10 people instead and we're unable to control the fire." The marshal replied, as the two of them looked up at the raging inferno. It was a small apartment building, about 6 floors high.

"Leave that to me. As soon as you see the fire go out, get your men in there. I'll need a hand getting the survivors out" Kendall replied, causing the marshal to nod before Kendall took a couple steps back. Forming a ramp up to the second story window, he broke into a sprint and slid up the ramp, quickly gaining access to the building, where the fire was raging like mad.

"Come on Kendall, you can do this" he muttered to himself, as he began to spray some of the fire with ice, cooling it instantly. In doing so, he also had sure to structurally secure the building, knowing that the fire could have done some serious damage to its structural integrity. Keeping the pattern going, he continued to do his best, trying to put out as many fires as he could.

Spotting the first person in need, he quickly dashed over to them and checked their heart rate. They were alive, but their breathing was shallow, so he knew he needed to act fast. Being as careful as he could, he picked them up, and threw them over his shoulder before making his way back to the window he entered from. Hopefully, he would be able to slide them down the ramp, and right into the paramedic's hands.

"I got a survivor!" he shouted from the window, causing everyone to look up at him, as they all gathered around the ramp. Carefully, he placed them onto it, before giving them a gentle push, allowing them to slide to safety. Once they'd reached the bottom, Kendall turned around, and headed back into the building, further his search for people and fire.

With the building slowly crumbling around him, he knew he needed to be quick, out of risk of the entire building collapsing. Considering the blond entered on the second floor, when he finally found the first flight of stairs, he made his way down them, and began to clear out the first floor of any fire, making sure to keep an eye out for anyone. Once he was finished, the blond opened the door, allowing the firemen to finally get into the building.

"I've cleared this floor and the one above. I'm gonna head up to the rest of them now. Stay close" Kendall ordered, causing them all to nod.

"You've got it" the foremost fireman replied as they began to run up the stairs. When they'd reached the third floor, Kendall was quick to freeze any fire in plain sight, before continuing his ascent, allowing the firemen to deal with any trapped people. This process continued as he climbed, the blond making sure to putt out as many fires as he could as well as making sure that the building wouldn't collapse.

When he'd reached the sixth floor, he was the only one left, so he knew he'd have to do this alone. The blond was slowly made his way through the rubble, putting out as many fires as he could, when he saw someone through the ash. He was quick to run over to them, and check their pulse, noticing how faint this was one. As well as that, the blond also noticed that the guy was trapped under a beam, one that was supporting a very unstable wall.

Taking a deep breath, he was quick to ice over the wall, hoping that would hold, before he manoeuvred himself so that he could free the man under the beam. Crouching down, the blond began to lift it but as soon as that happened, he noticed how the wall buckled slightly, causing him to panic. As slowly as he could, Kendall continued to lift the beam, hoping to rest it on his knee so that he could free the man from under it. The higher the beam was lifted, the more the wall began to buckle, but when he finally got it onto his knee, he breathed out a sigh of relief, one that was short lived however. The building began to creek around him, and the blond knew that wasn't a good sign at all.

With the beam on his right knee, Kendall reached over and picked up the man and threw him over his shoulder, knowing that his escape would have to be quick. Taking another deep breath, Kendall quickly moved the two of them out of the way, the beam falling from his knee as he did so. That caused the beam to slam into the ground, a loud rumbling coming from it as the wall collapsed. Luckily, Kendall and the man were by the stairs at this point, but that didn't help when the rest of the building also began to collapse around him.

Letting out a sigh of frustration, Kendall sprayed the stairs in front of him, sliding down the stair case as the building creaked and crumbled around him. The blond was able to keep up his momentum as he went, gliding down the square staircase at speed and once they reached the ground floor, he shot out of the door, just in time for the building to collapse behind him. Coming to a halt, Kendall dropped the final man off to the paramedic before turning back to the fire marshal. "Was anyone left inside?"

"No, we got them all out" the marshal replied, letting Kendall breath out a sigh of relief.

"Sorry, about the building" he continued, causing the marshal to let out a chuckle.

"Thanks Blizzard, without you, we wouldn't have been able to save everyone on time."

"Don't worry about it, and you've got a fine crew" Kendall replied, causing the man to nod before Kendall set of running again, safe in the knowledge that he'd done some good today, although his secret identity never sat right with him.

'Blizzard'

* * *

"What the hell is this?" Griffin asked, slamming a news article down onto the desk.

"You asked for a story" James replied, pushing his glasses back as he looked up at his boss.

"I asked you to write about how Blizzard caused a building to collapse, not about how he saved 10 people"

"But isn't that the real story? Those people are alive because of him." James replied, seeing Griffin balls his hands slightly, before relaxing.

"But now where will they live? They have no home and all their stuff is destroyed. Plus, the city will now have to build a new apartment block, wasting money that could be spent elsewhere. And it's all because of that 'Blizzard.'" Griffin replied, letting out another sigh of relief. "Now, I expect that article to be reworked and ready by the end of tomorrow. Do you understand me?"

"Yes" James replied, nodding as he grabbed the news article and pulled it towards him. Griffin just let out another sigh before he turned around and walked back towards his office.

"He's a serious dick" James heard from behind, causing him to chuckle as he spun around to face his co-worker Camille. "I can't believe he wants you to change the story. When I read over it, it was really good"

"Thanks Camille, but I suppose if I want to keep my job, I should do what he says"

"Seriously dude? You don't even need the job" Camille replied, causing James to roll his eyes. "Your dad basically owns the city, you could do nothing and still get whatever you want."

"But you know I don't want to rely on him. I want to make my own name" James replied, causing Camille to roll her eyes. "Anyway, I should get back to work. This article isn't going to rewrite itself" he finished, turning back around which caused him to come face to face with his previous article.

It was title 'Blizzard Battles Blaze,' featuring the heroic actions of Blizzard, but apparently that's not what people want to read anymore.

* * *

5 Hours later, and James was finally leaving the building. At seven pm, the air was crisp and chilly, causing James to shiver slightly as he put on his coat and slung his laptop bag over his shoulder, debating what to do. He knew that he needed to work on his article, and he also knew that his apartment didn't have any food in, so he'd probably end up ordering take away.

Again.

Knowing that was definitely not what he wanted, he started to debate where else he could do. There was always a restaurant, although he supposed they might get a little funny with him working on his computer all night.

Starbucks?

Too popular for his taste. He wasn't a hipster or anything, but the brunet knew that he wouldn't be able to get any work done there.

With no decision in mind, the brunet found himself walking the streets of Spirit City, talking in his surroundings. The place was definitely a metropolis, with sky scrapers climbing high into the clouds, the tallest of which being his father's tower. 'Diamond Inc' was illuminated down the side, standing bright amongst the dull night, like a constant reminder of what James had to live up to. Well, what his father believed he should live up to at least.

All James wanted was to be a journalist, to inform the public of what was happening and what was being done to help them, but it seems his father had different opinion, wanting James to be as rich and as successful as he was. And from growing up with a background of money, James knew he didn't want that. Sure, money was great, but James knew that wasn't everything in life. He'd learnt that lesson when his mother died.

Wiping the tears from his eyes, James refocused on his task of trying to find somewhere to sit and write. He'd noticed that he'd walked for a good 10 minutes while lost in his thought bubble, so he stopped to take a look around when a quaint little coffee shop caught his eye. The place looked quiet, and was advertising free Wi-Fi in the window, so really it was a win win. With one last shiver due to the cold, James made his way over, noticing how the coffee shop had a few inhabitants, nothing that would steer him away however.

As he stepped in, he noticed how a little bell sounded above the door, causing a small smile to grow on his face as he made his way over to a booth. Pulling the laptop out of his bag, and settling it on the table, James reached for a menu while he waited for it to load, looking through the menu. It seemed like they served typical finger foods like sandwiches, toasties and baked potatoes, as well as some desserts like cakes, scones and ice-cream. Oh, and there was also Coffee and a range of other hot drinks. Hearing that his laptop had loaded, the brunet set the menu aside as he navigated to the file he needed. That's when he noticed a shadow looming over the table. With a smile, the brunet looked up and was greeted with a cute blond with a notepad in hand.

"Hi, I'm Kendall, and I'll be your server this evening. Can I get you anything?" the blond asked, as James took in a few noticeable features such as his vibrant green eyes, or the fact that his hair was just a little too long to suit him properly.

"Sure, can I have a cup of coffee, and a cheese and ham toastie please?" James replied, causing Kendall to nod as he began to note it down.

"Is that everything?"

"Um, I might be here a little while, so can the coffee just keep coming?" James asked, causing Kendall to let out a little chuckle.

"Of course, just give me a wave and I'll come refill it for you"

"Thanks" James replied, causing Kendall to nod as the two of them maintained eye contact for a second too long. The blond seemed mesmerised by James' hazel eyes and it was only when James glanced away that Kendall finally did the same, a small blush settling on his face as he walked away.

With that out of the way, James refocused his attention on his article, although he couldn't help the fact that his eyes kept trailing over to the cute blond waiter.

* * *

Three hours seemed to pass rigorously slowly for James, with the brunet struggling to rewrite his new article. Sure, he knew what his boss wanted from him, and yet he couldn't find the will to write an article discrediting Blizzard. Sure, a building was destroyed in the process, but the end result was that Blizzard had saved ten lives, ten people who had families out there.

Rubbing his hand over his forehead, he reached for his coffee mug only to notice it was empty. Letting out a sigh, James made eye contact with Kendall before signalling for coffee, causing the blond to nod as he picked up the pot from the counter and made his way over to James.

"Thank you" the brunet said, and as soon as Kendall was finished pouring, he picked up the mug and took a sip.

"I hate to be nosy, but I can't help but notice what you've been working on. You a fan of Blizzard?" The blond asked, for some reason feeling like this random stranger's opinion was important to him.

"Personally, I think he's great, but my boss seems to disagree" James began, causing Kendall to raise an eyebrow at him.

"May I ask why?" the blond asked, causing James to let out a little chuckle.

"Well, take today for example. Blizzard went into that building and saved 10 lives, but when I write an article about that, my boss doesn't care. He wants me to write about how the building collapsed and how these people now have nowhere to live. It just doesn't sit right with me, so I'm struggling to write it" James continued, causing Kendall to nod along.

"Can I offer a word of advice?" he said, causing James to glance up at him. "I think that you should write your boss wants. Write about how Blizzard, someone who uses ice, destroyed the building that was on fire. I think you should write that the ten people that Blizzard saved from the fire now have nothing to _live_ for. See what I'm doing?" Kendall asked, causing James to nod.

"I see exactly what you're doing. I just need to spin the wording of my story, so it still shows that Blizzard is a hero, but it does it in a way that my boss will like. Thank you, Kendall," James replied, causing the blond to blush once again.

"Don't worry about it. And I'm here until close in case you need any more coffee"

"I'm sure I will" James replied, granting Kendall another smile before the blond walked away.

With a new abundance of energy, James found it easy to work through his article, changing the phrasing of certain parts in order to accommodate what his boss wanted.

Kendall on the other hand was silently buzzing at the news he'd just received. It seems the hot guy approved of his…side projects, and that made what he does so much better.

* * *

As the night drew to an end, and the coffee shop began to close, James found the courage to speak to Kendall one last time. "Hey" James said, his laptop bag over his shoulder once again. "I just wanted to say thank you for the help tonight, it was really useful."

"Don't worry about it, I'm just glad I could help" Kendall replied, a blush growing on his face again.

"Well, if you ever feel like you want to help again, maybe you could give me a call?" James continued, taking a massive risk as he handed a small business card to Kendall, with his name and number on it. The nerves that were flowing through him in this moment were immense, but when he saw the smile that grew on Kendall's face, he calmed slightly.

"Yeah, I might just do that…James" Kendall replied, reading the name of the card with a smile.

"Anyway, I best be off, so…have a good night"

"You too James" Kendall replied, causing James to smile once more before he walked out the door.

The smile of Kendall's face was enormous. The one down side to it all however was that the blond was unsure how he was going to manage this and his other job, seeing James and protecting Spirit City.

 _'One step at a time Kendall. One step at a time.'_

* * *

 **So, there we have it, a superhero story. Although, I have to admit, I always forget that I have to write a summary for stories, which I suck at by the way, so I guess you already knew what it was about 😜 Anywho, let me know what you thought, as this might be the story to replace Class Vs Character when that finishes!**

 **I will see you tomorrow for the next chapter of Class Vs Character, but until then,**

 **TTFN 😃**


	2. Chapter 2

**Happy New Year everyone! So for me, the clock has just stuck Midnight, meaning that for me, 2019 has officially begun! I want to thank you all so much for a brilliant 2018, and here's hoping that 2019 is just as great! I thought I'd start this new year off with a chapter for you all, so I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

Kendall sprinted through the doors of the lab, silently cursing himself for being so late. Well, he was 5 minutes late, but he knew this would come to bite him in the ass. Placing his bag into the locker, the blond was quick to put on his lab coat and slot his safety glasses into his pocket, but when he turned around, he couldn't escape the small sigh that escaped his mouth.

"Nice of you to join me" Logan said, subtly glancing down at his watch to let Kendall know he was late.

"I know, I'm sorry Doc. I didn't hear my first alarm and I overslept, it won't happen again" Kendall replied, as Logan turned around and headed back over to his equipment.

"You've said that the last four times as well."

 _'That's what happens when you're out late saving the city'_ Kendall thought to himself, before Logan continued to speak.

"If you weren't our best Glaciologist, we'd have probably let you go by now. Especially consider you're an intern."

"I know Dr Mitchell, and I'm sorry" Kendall said again, trying not to let the frustration get to him, because one, he'd heard this speech 4 times before this, and two, because he was slightly annoyed with himself. Although being slightly late from work was definitely worth it, considering he'd stopped a mugging last night, two robberies and help an old woman cross the road.

Shaking the thoughts from his head, Kendall headed over to his work station, and began to load up his computer, ready to see the results from their tests. While waiting, the blond took in his surroundings, still slightly in awe of the place he worked in. The lab itself wasn't too large, but it included a lot of high tech equipment, the stuff Kendall had heard about at University, but never dreamed he'd be working with. There was also a supercomputer available to the two of them, as with them both being on the theoretical side of the experiments, it was useful for them to be able to run simulations and models, to see whether their experiment would work.

Along side that were a load of sieving, pulverising and milling equipment, as well as microscopes, allowing them to refine their sample material and review it in great detail. Kendall could go on all day about the equipment available to him, but instead he had to focus on the experiment. The doomed experiment in his eyes. Logan was working at his own work station, but Kendall could see how he was anxious to get the results.

"I still think this is absurd you know" Kendall spoke out loud, causing Logan to glance over at him.

"Well, the Diamond's don't pay us for opinions, they pay us for facts" Logan replied, before quickly glancing down at his computer and back up. "Although, off the record, I do agree with you" he added, causing Kendall to chuckle as he loaded up the GIS software that he was using.

As he loaded into the constantly updating file, it was fair to say that Kendall was slightly anxious as well to see the results of it, but he didn't hold out much hope. Really, he was more sceptical about how the fate of his job hanged in the balance. With the file loaded, Kendall nodded his head over at Logan, causing the brunet to glance up at him. The brunet was quick to make his way over to Kendall's computer, the two of them looking at the results, a slight amount of awe on their faces.

"It worked" Logan stated, almost like he couldn't believe it himself. Kendall on the other hand refreshed the page once again to make sure he had the most up to date information. When it came back showing the same thing, he let out the breath he was holding.

"It did. I mean, it's only grown about an inch, but it's still grown" the blond replied, before shaking his head. "Still, we'll have to run more tests at different locations around the world. Just because we stopped this glacier from receding doesn't mean we can do it for all of them. This could have only been an isolated incident."

"Tell that to Mr Diamond. These results will be enough for him to spearhead the project."

"At least we're still in for a job then. A long, massively misdirected job" Kendall joked, causing Logan to roll his eyes at the blond.

"I think you're the only person that is able to make a negative out of stopping glacial receding, and still being in a job."

"I'm not trying to be negative, I just don't think this is the way to go about battling Climate Change. We should be focusing on stopping pollution and finding clean energy sources instead of trying to combat the effects" Kendall replied, causing Logan to chuckle while he patted Kendall on the shoulder.

"Well, you can get on that wonder child. I however, am going to write up the results from today. We'll keep an eye on it for the rest of the week and present our finding then" Logan replied, causing Kendall to nod as he turned back to his computer, ready to analyse the data they'd collected.

* * *

James stood, waiting anxiously as Griffin read over his newly revised article about Blizzard and the fire that had occurred yesterday. After leaving the coffee shop late last night, James was buzzing at the fact that Kendall had taken his number and found that that had provided him with enough energy to finish the article when he got home. Well, it was either that or the extraordinary amount of coffee that he had drunk, but the brunet was pinning it on the former.

So, when he walked in to the building this morning, James was quick to head up to Griffin's office, ready to provide him with the rewritten work, as well as hear his boss' opinion on it, leading James to his current predicament, which was him waiting awkwardly as Griffin read over it. From the sounds that his boss was making, James was hoping that his boss enjoyed it, but really there was no way for him to tell. James' anxiety rocketed when he saw Griffin place the work onto the desk as well as stare up at him, but James tried not to show how nervous he was.

"I like it" Griffin said, causing James to let out a sigh of relief. "It was exactly what I asked for. You've shown the damage that Blizzard has caused, as well as framed him as the menace he is" Griffin continued, causing James to nod along, as he tried not to let a smirk grow on his face, knowing he'd also done the complete opposite of that.

It just depended on how you read it.

"Thank you" James replied, the gratitude showing on his face genuine, causing Griffin to flash him a brief smile before standing up from his desk.

"From now on, I'm assigning you all of the Blizzard stories. It's clear that you understand this pest the same way as I do, and I'm sure I can trust you to cover all of his activities in the same way and uncover who the menace really is."

"I'll try" James replied, causing Griffin to smile at him once again, before extending a hand out for a handshake, James quickly taking it.

"I'll get this sent to the publisher, and it should be out for tonight's issue. Now, get to work! We've got reports of Blizzard's actions over night that need to be covered straight away"

"I'll get on it" James replied, before turning and leaving Griffin's office as he finally let his smirk free. As he walked back over to his desk, Camille instantly picked up on his facial expression, causing her to let out a chuckle.

"I'm guessing he liked it?" she asked, causing James to nod as he sat down in his chair and spun it round to face Camille.

"He did. Said 'it portrayed Blizzard as the menace he is" James replied, causing Camille to let out a little chuckle.

"I'm guessing he misread half of the article then" she responded, causing James to let out a hearty laugh.

"Still, it's kept me in a job, and I've even been assigned all of the future Blizzard stories, so I can continue 'to portray him like the pest he is' so I don't mind it too much" James quoted, causing Camille to shake her head.

"You always get all of the good stuff, whereas I'm here, stuck reporting on the city's road repairing operation" Camille replied, causing James to let out a soft chuckle.

"I'm sure you'll get something good eventually. Besides, who knows, maybe I'll let you help me out"

"Thanks for the pity" Camille replied, her tone a little teasing causing James to let out a chuckle before he turned back towards his desk, ready to start his work for the day.

However, as he tried to start, his mind kept wondering back to Kendall, and the fact that he'd been the one to help James secure his victory today. With a smile on his face at the thought of the blond, James suspected he'd find himself at the coffee shop again tonight.

* * *

As Kendall worked away at his computer, looking for the next location they could use for their experiment, he found himself glancing up to the TV that was on the wall, one that was currently playing Dispatch Weekly. The first time he glanced up, there was nothing of note on, with the presenter talking to a guest they'd invited on about some random topic so mundane that Kendall couldn't even be bothered to read the headline, meaning that he returned to his work, but when the TV's volume suddenly flared up, showing the breaking news logo as well as the dramatic music that followed, he showed some interest.

Both he and Logan stopped the tasks they were working on to listen to the newscaster that came onto the screen. "An armour cash-in-transit vehicle has been hijacked after leaving the Spirit City Bank moment ago and is wreaking havoc on the city. No one knows how this hijacking has occurred and we will keep you updated as the situation develops" the newscaster said, with the majority of the screen now flicking to an aerial view of the vehicle, which was ramming cars off of the road, as well as taking down lampposts and the occasion street sign.

"Damn, it feels like this city is getting even more dangerous every single day" Logan spoke up, causing Kendall to look over at him. "Still, I'm grateful we have Blizzard looking out for us. I'm sure he'll sort this out as well"

That caused a small smile to grow on Kendall's face, with that exact thing being the blond's plan. Still, he had to get there first. "Hopefully" Kendall replied, before looking at the time on his watch. "Um, do you mind if I go get some lunch? I didn't have breakfast and I'm starving" he asked, and that got Logan's attention, with the brunet rolling his eyes.

"Fine, but I expect you to pick me up something as well" Logan replied, causing Kendall to nod.

"Anything in particular?"

"Something warm" Logan answered, causing Kendall to let out a chuckle as he walked over to his locker and grabbed his bag. Warm was the exact opposite of what Kendall was going for right now.

As calmly as he could, the blond made his way out of their lab, before sprinting down the corridor towards one of the janitor's closets. The blond knew that the building was never cleaned during the day, meaning that it was the best place for him to quickly get changed. Plus, it also provided him a location to store all his stuff while he was out saving the city.

When in the closet, he was quick to change into his suit, before throwing his rucksack up onto the highest shelf, where he knew no one could reach it. Luckily these closets also had translucent windows in them, meaning that Kendall's escape could be quick…well at least that's what the blond thought as when he went to push the window open, he realised that they had safety restrictors on, meaning that he couldn't open it more than a few centimetres.

"The one time I actually need to get out of window, and these are here" Kendall mumbled to himself, before considering his other options. His and Logan's lab was on the 50th floor of the Diamond building, out of 110 floors meaning that he was right in the middle of the building. Realising that his other options were to climb or descend about 50 floors, Kendall reached for the restrictor and ripped it in half, while silently apologising to it.

Still, the minor damage to the building was nothing compared to what the armour truck was causing, so Kendall didn't let the damage haunt him as he hopped out of the window and began his descent towards where the most blue and red flashing lights where.

The police were always a good place to start in these situations.

* * *

Finding the stolen vehicle was easy, with it constantly being followed by a news helicopter and when Kendall saw that the police were setting up a blockade further down the street, the blond headed that way, hoping to find out if the police had a plan in place, and what that plan was. So, as the blond skated down towards street level, he kept one eye on the truck, making sure that it wasn't causing any significant damage. Luckily the police had done a good job of blocking off the area and removing any pedestrians from it.

"Ah, Blizzard, I was wondering when you'd show up" the police chief said as Kendall finally reached ground level and walked up next to him.

"Chief Garcia" Kendall replied, glancing down the road to see whereabouts the armoured truck was, before looking around the cornered off area. By the looks of it, the blockade was equipped with stings as well as a few of their own armoured vehicles in order to try and stop the truck. "You think a blockade will work?"

"We can only hope. We haven't got much of a choice with the narrow streets, and we can't exactly blow the truck off the road. The best we can do it try to slow it down in a controlled way" Garcia replied, causing Kendall to nod as he pondered the situation a little more.

"Alright, just wait here" Kendall replied, causing Carlos to nod towards him before Kendall set off in a sprint, heading towards the truck, icing up the road as he did so. He must have done this for about the length of a block, before making his way back over to the main staging area. "Alright, so I've iced the road a little bit. Hopefully once the truck hits it, the driver will lose control of the vehicle and slam on the brakes. By the time they gets here, they should be going slow enough that the stings completely destroy the tires, bringing them to a stop" Kendall explained, causing Carlos to let out a nod before the radio on his uniform buzzed, causing them both to look over at the direction of the truck, which they could now both clearly see was barrelling towards them.

"We best get out it's way. Last thing we need is that ploughing into us" Carlos joked, causing Kendall to let out a little chuckle before the two of them headed towards the sidewalk, ready to pounce into action when the truck had stopped.

All eyes watched as the truck approached the icy patch that Kendall has made, hoping that it would make some sort of difference to the speed of the vehicle, although deep down Kendall could feel that something was going to go wrong. That fear was only exemplified when instead of slipping on the ice as expected, the truck seemed to adapt to it just fine, with the armoured vehicle even speeding up in what Kendall assumed was a plan to bash straight through the blockade.

In a final ditch effort to stop the vehicle, the blond sent a blast of ice out in between the two buildings currently bordering them, creating a massive ice wall.

"What are you doing?" Carlos asked, as soon as he saw the construction of the wall take place, slowly beginning to piece it together in his head.

"The stings aren't going to stop that thing. Instead, it's going to plough right over them and then right through your trucks as well, before continuing to destroy the city. At least this way, the truck will stop" Kendall replied, finishing up the job, before turning his attention towards the truck, which had now seemed to increase it's speed even more in at attempt to crash straight through the wall.

"God I hope you're right" Carlos replied, shaking his head slightly.

"So do I" Kendall mumbled, the two of them watching as the truck bypassed them and slammed straight into the wall, causing a rumble to occur around them.

They all watched as most of the ice wall crumbled around the truck, with some chucks completely coming clear of the wall, while others just cracked and splintered. However, as the dust finally cleared, everyone became aware at the fact that the truck had indeed stopped, with it being partly wedged in the wall.

"Nice work Blizzard" Carlos said, patting Kendall on the back before ordering the officers around him to surround the truck, ready for the driver to exit. It was usually at this point that Kendall would take off, letting the police handing the arrest, but when a loud bang occurred, and the driver's side door was projected about 10 feet outwards, Kendall knew that something was quite right about this.

All the officers still crowded around the vehicle, waiting for the perpetrator to get out, and when he finally did, everyone was slightly shocked by what they were greeted with. A man dressed in combat trousers, as well as trench coat emerged, his eyes covered with what seemed to be wielding goggles and his arms seemed to be encased in some sort of contraption, which was glowing beneath the casing. Everyone was unsure of what to do, with the police officers now aiming their weapons at the man.

"Get down on your knees!" One of the officers shouted, causing the man to bark out a laugh as he rolled his shoulder back.

"I don't think so" the man said, before launching one of his fists into the ground, causing the men surrounding him to be thrown into the air, while the concrete flexed around them. The ice wall that Kendall had constructed seemed to crumble completely, with the whole thing collapsing into the ground, and even some of the buildings surrounding them showed cracks that had formed.

Kendall leapt into action, knowing that he had to take his guy down. Getting high in an attempt to gain an advantage, he aimed an ice blast at his hands and feet hoping to freeze the guy into place. Before any of that could happen however, the guy punch his fist once again, causing a circular wave of energy to fly right towards the blond, destroying the ice the blond was skating on, as well as throwing him straight to the ground with a thud. As Kendall hit the floor, he became slightly dizzy from the impact, and when he tried to get back up straight away, he found that his head pounded, causing him to drop back down onto his knees, which resulted in the guy let out a manic laugh once again.

"Behold, your hero unable to get up after an encounter with me" the man said, his voice projecting loudly in order to make sure that everyone could hear him as he punched the back of the armoured truck, causing both doors to cave in. Reaching in, the man grabbed a couple bags filled with cash before turning back to everyone once again. "This won't be the last you see of me, I can guarantee it. Money's in short supply these days and I know a few places where I can get loads of it, so remember this name when you see me. Remember to fear the name Pulsewave" the man monologued, before aiming his gauntlets at the ground and jumping up to the closest rooftop before projecting himself into the distance. Feeling a hand on his shoulder, Kendall finally stood up from the ground, his head still a little fuzzy.

"Feeling alright?" Carlos asked, as Kendall placed his hand onto his forehead.

"I will be. What was that all about?" Kendall replied, causing Carlos to let out a shrug.

"I don't know, but it seems like this city's being faced with it's first super-villain. In all fairness, it was only time until it happened."

"Still, I don't like it. And by what he said, it seems like he's going to be targeting banks"

"I'll get my guys to stand guard. At least that way, we'll know if something goes on"

"Thanks chief" Kendall replied, before seeing the crowd of people, most reporters, that were filing in to see what had occurred. "I should get going."

"Thanks for all your help today Blizzard, I can't imagine what we would have done without it" Carlos replied, causing Kendall to nod once more before breaking into a slow jog. His head was still hurting, but he knew that he needed to get back to work before Logan started to get suspicious.

As the blond took off however, his eyes were drawn to a familiar hazel pair that were currently entering the scene. The two men made eye contact for a second too long, before Kendall set off for good, leaving James to question why Blizzard seemed to stare at him.

* * *

James grinned as the little bell above the door in the coffee shop sounded. One, because it was really quaint, and help James feel slightly more relaxed but also because it caused Kendall to look over at the door before a grin grew on his face. James was quick to smile back, their eye contact remaining a little too long before Kendall finally looked away to finishing his current order while James headed for the same booth as yesterday.

Repeating the same routine as yesterday, James pulled out his laptop, setting it on the table, and while he waited for it to load, he grabbed the menu, looking over what he could order tonight. A mug was placed down in front of him while he was doing that, and he grinned as he looked up at Kendall who was pouring him some coffee. James was quick to notice the small scratch on Kendall's face however, causing a frown to take over from the grin.

"Are you alright?" James asked, pointing to the location of the scratch on his own face, causing Kendall to raise his fingers up to his own, before gently touching the location. The blond hissed at the pain it caused, before letting out a chuckle.

"Yeah I'm fine, it's just a little sore. It must have happened earlier" Kendall answered, causing James to raise an eyebrow at him as it to question what he meant. "Oh, I was at the scene where Blizzard and Pulsewave were. I must have scratched myself when I fell down" Kendall continued and to be honest, he wasn't exactly lying, he was just avoiding certain aspects of the truth.

"That must have been horrible…are you sure you're ok?" James asked again, genuine concern present in his voice causing Kendall to blush slightly as he nodded once again.

"I'm fine honest" Kendall replied, touched by the concern James was showing. "What about you? By the looks of it, you're setting up for the night again" the blond joked, causing James to let out a soft chuckle.

"Seems like it. I've got to write a report on the fight that happened today. The stuff I rewrote last night really impressed him, so he's assigned me all of the Blizzard cases in the future. Thanks for your help on that, again by the way"

"Don't worry about it" Kendall replied, quirking his eyebrow at James once again. "So, you're a Blizzard reviewer now then eh?" Kendall asked, causing James to let out a chuckle.

"It seems so. I've also been tasked to find out who he is…like that's not impossible for anything" James replied, causing Kendall's eyebrow's to raise a little more.

"Well, let's hope that you get a stroke of luck" Kendall replied, flashing James a cheeky smile before telling the brunet to wave him over as soon as he was ready to order some food.

As Kendall walked away, he couldn't help the smug look that grew on his face. It turned out that Blizzard was a lot closer to James than he'd considered.

* * *

 **So there we have it! We have the introduction of Kendall's second job, which is as an intern at Diamond Labs, we saw the outcome of James' rewritten article, meaning that he's been assigned all of the future Blizzard cases and we had the introduction of the first super-villain of the story, Pulsewave!**

 **So, I want to give a massive thank you to White Collar Black Wolf, Guest, RainbowDiamonds and Guest for reviewing the last chapter and thank you all for your support! I'm so glad to see that you all liked it, and hopefully this chapter captured your interest again, as I know it's been a little while since the first one was uploaded!**

 **Anyway, happy New Year once again and I will see you all on Thursday for the next chapter of Rush & Response! But until then,**

 **TTFN! 😃**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! I don't have a lot to say here really, so let's crack on with this shall we?**

* * *

A couple nights later, Kendall found himself laid restless in bed, the blond tossing and turning while the gears in his mind continued to turn, constantly reviewing what had happened during his encounter with Pulsewave. The blond hadn't had much time to review the fight between them over the last couple of days, with him being extremely busy during work at Diamond Inc as Mr Diamond spearheaded his and Logan's research much like the Doctor had predicted. The two now spent most days reviewing the techniques that were used at the successful location in order to apply them to more locations around the world. Kendall was still massively pessimistic about it all, with the blond knowing a lot about ice and how it worked but he stayed for the sake of it being interesting research that while he didn't want to admit it, he actually enjoyed.

As well as that, the blond found himself working at the café most nights, both in order to keep earning enough money to fund himself, but also because he knew that James frequented that location a lot and he really liked spending time with the brunet, despite how little it was. On top of all of this of course was Kendall's second life, Blizzard, with the blond spending the very little free time he had, as well as the none free time that he had, helping to keep the city safe and protected. There still hadn't been another Pulsewave incident, but there had been a series of muggings, drug deals, robberies and some aggravated assaults which Kendall had stopped.

So, in moments like this, when Kendall finally got some well deserved time off, he found it irritating that his brain wouldn't shut off with him, with it instead going off what had happened again and again. What made it even worse for the blond was that he couldn't figure out what Pulsewave had used to take him down so easily. It was clear to Kendall however, that whatever it was was very powerful, so he knew that he had Pulsewave had to be stopped.

Groaning into his pillow at the fact that his brain wouldn't shut up, Kendall pulled himself up from his bed and decided to head back into the living room of his small apartment, his theory being that maybe he could distract himself while watching some TV, and eventually drift into a peaceful slumber. Still, as the brunet planted himself down on the sofa, with the hopes to distract himself, his mind seemed to race.

 _'How'd did he manage that? Was it some sort of directed energy release? No, surely his gauntlets were too small to produce an energy surge needed to produce such a wave of energy. As well as that, the energy would have to be generated extremely quickly, and nothing invented to do that?'_ His mind raced, Kendall trying his hardest to focus on the screen in front of him, which was showing a sitcom.

 _'Maybe he invented an energy source that could generate that much energy. Yeah, but if he did that, then why would be stealing money. Surely he could just sell the invention and make billions off of that'_ Kendall groaned, hoping it would just give in. _'Also, what would be the purpose of wasting so much of that energy. Surely something more powerful could be made by directing the energy created, like a laser!'_

Kendall sighed. Obviously there was no way that his brain was going to shut off, so he might as well make sure of this time. Knowing that there was one place that he'd be able to run theories and find out what Pulsewave was doing, Kendall glanced at the time, wonder when it actually was. _1:05_ the clocked flashed at him, causing him to let out another sigh. Diamond Inc didn't open until 10:00am on a Saturday, and the blond certainly didn't need to be caught breaking and entering today so he knew he would have to wait until then.

That let him about 9 hours to fill and the blond knew exactly how to fill it.

Suiting up, Kendall found himself sneaking out of his apartment building, making sure that no one saw him leaving through the window of his apartment in order to maintain his secret identity, before he began his search for crime that he could fight, and much like he expected, it wasn't difficult for him to run into some.

About three blocks down, Kendall saw in one of the ally ways what appeared to be a drug deal that had gone sideways. Three guys seemed to be hiding either behind wooden pallets or bins, with firearms pointed at each other. Luckily, it seems that neither of them had shot at each other yet meaning that the pedestrians in the area weren't alerted to any danger. If Kendall was lucky, he'd be able to handle this quietly.

Sneaking down onto one the rooftops nearby, Kendall took in his surrounding a little better. Two of the perps had seemed to have rolled out a bin from where it was supposed to be sat and where using that as cover, while the final guy was using what happened to be a wooden pallet leaning on some metal barrels. Neither of the groups could see each other very well, apart from the intermediate glanced around and over their cover to see if the other was still there. If Kendall could time this right, he'd be able to freeze the two behind the bin first before focusing on the last remaining guy.

With a plan in place, Kendall ran to the opposite edge of the building, before creating a ramp that he could slide down to get onto ground level, and after a quick search for the entrance to the alley way, the blond found himself crouching down as he peeked around the wall which the two guys have their backs too. With a quick flash of his hand, Kendall shot two beams of ice at the perps, which froze their feet to the ground as well as their hands to the bin, before he got out of their eye line and skated around to the other entrance to the alley, which the other guy had his back to. By the time he'd gotten there, the two original perps were rattling against the bin in order to free themselves and before the third guy could react, Kendall found himself doing the exact same thing to him, freezing his feet to the ground and his hands to the barrels he was hid behind.

Still, after all of that, Kendall's mind still rattled with how Pulsewave's gauntlets worked and he knew that he would have to talk it over with someone in order to try and get it out of his head. Shaking his head as he walked, Kendall headed over to the criminal who was by himself.

"I just don't get it" he began, grabbing the gun from the restrained criminal before making his way over to the over two restrained perps. "I mean, how do those gauntlets work? Do they have some sort of mini reactor in them, in order to generate that much power?" Kendall asked, causing the perps to look at him before yelling and rattling even more to try and gain their freedom. "As well as that, how does he direct the power? Surely, normal technology wouldn't be able to withstand that much power, so how does he do it?" Kendall asked gain, the perps just yelling and threatening him the entire time.

"When I get free of here, I'm going to shoot you" one of the restrained guys said, causing Kendall to drop his head and shake it.

"Fine, since you guys aren't going to be any help, I'll get back to it then" he said, freezing all the guns in one central location before pulling out the phone that was specially used for Blizzard activities. Calling the police, alerting them to the fact that three criminals were restrained in a back alley, Kendall made his way back into the sky, hoping to scout out for more crime for him to deal with.

Still, the blond knew that with his mind still running at a million miles an hour, he'd be in for a long night before Diamond Inc opened.

* * *

"James, what are you doing here at 9:45 in the morning? I thought you didn't work Saturdays and that they were your 'rest day'" Henry, James' Dad, said putting quotation mark around the words 'rest day.' James knew that his dad didn't exactly approve of his life choices at the moment with the brunet wanting to work in journalism instead of his own company, as well as the brunet having days off.

 _'Working hard means working at hard times'_ His father always said to him when he was growing up, and just imagining it now, James couldn't help but roll his eyes at the statement, remembering all the hard times his father had worked. His year 6 leaving assembly, his year 11 leaving assembly and even his 10th birthday, but James tried not to dwell on it much. Snapping back into reality at the sound of his father shuffling papers about, James finally replied.

"I'm here to ask you the same question. You know you should be at home" James said, causing his father to scoff, before breaking out into a cough.

That caused James to raise his eyebrow at the action. "James, I'm fine seriously, it's just a cold. I mean, you heard what the doctor said."

"I did and he said that it wasn't a cold or a chest infection and that you have to go see a specialist, because he didn't know what else it could be" James replied, stepping closer to his father's desk. "Seriously dad, you need to go home and rest. I can organise for someone to come out and see you."

"I don't need anyone to 'come out and see me' and I'm telling you, I'm perfectly fine. Besides, this company isn't going to run itself, and I'm not going to stop because I have a cold"

"Will you forget about the company for one second and think about your health. You could be seriously ill Dad" James said, before casting his eyes down to the floor as he mumbled the next part. "You know what happened to mum"

That caused Henry to look up at him, his eyes wide. "What happened to your mum was a terrible tragedy James, and nothing to be compared to what I'm going through right now, so why don't you show some respect when you talk about her like that. I'm not going to have you stand her and slander her name!" Henry shouted, standing up from his desk slightly while his finger was directly pointed at James.

"I'm not slandering anything! All I'm saying is that mum was ill, and before we knew it, she was gone. I'm worried about the same thing happening to you!" James shouted back, the two men continually staring at each other, neither one wanting to give out first.

"I'm fine James" Henry finally said, dropping back down into his seat. "And if I did have anything, it's not going to get better with you standing there badgering me to go home and rest. I'm perfectly capable of looking after myself, so why don't you do the same?"

Knowing that there was no way for him to get through to his father, especially after having an argument with him, James just nodded. "Fine" the brunet said, turning on his heels before heading to the lift at the back of the room.

When Henry noticed James' sudden departure, he couldn't help the wave of guilt that passed through him, knowing that his son was only trying to look out for him. "James wait" His father called out, but the brunet decided to ignore it. "James, I'm speaking to you" His father called out once again, his tone demanding and off putting, causing James to just shrug as he pressed the lift button. Luckily for him, the lift door opened immediately and without hesitation, James stepped in and pressed the button for the ground floor. "James!" His father called out once again, and as the lift doors closed, James was greeted with the sound of his father breaking into a fit of coughs and wheezing.

When the door where finally shut, James let his disappointment and concern show. It was clear to him that his father wasn't going to do anything about it, and despite the fact that his father believed that he could look out for himself, it was clear he couldn't. His mind raced with possibilities, the brunet wondering whether he should organise a specialist appointment for his father or not and at the risk of pissing off his father more, James decided to go for it. His father had already shouted at him once today, so he might as well make it twice.

* * *

As James stepped out of the lift, he was greeted with a sight that he hadn't expected to see; Kendall sliding his ID card through the barrier to get access to the building. The blond was so engrossed in the process, with him having to slide his card through a second time, that he didn't even notice James' approach. "Kendall is that you?" James asked, causing the blond to jump out of his skin for a second before realising who was speaking to him.

"It's me" he replied, causing James to let out a soft chuckle, one that caused Kendall to blush slightly.

"We need to stop running into each other like this. It would be easier for the two of us to go on a date if we wanted to chat" James decided to joke, taking a risky move, but hoping that it would get the desired effect. When Kendall's blush furthered as the blond nodded and laughed, James knew that it had. "So what are you doing here anyway?"

"Oh, I'm an intern here, working on the glaciers project"

"And you're work on a Saturday?" James asked, causing Kendall to let out a little chuckle.

"I'm not supposed to be, but I got a brilliant idea when I was laid in bed this morning, and I wanted to run some simulations on it" Kendall replied, telling a half truth. While he certainly was thinking about something this morning that he wanted to run some simulations on, it wasn't a brilliant idea in the slightest. Instead, it was some a mind blank, not that James needed to know that. "What are you doing here?" Kendall asked, causing James to gesture to the lift.

"I was visiting my dad" he shrugged, and he could visibly see the cogs turning in Kendall's head.

"Your dad?" the blond asked, causing James to nod.

"Yeah, Henry Diamond." James replied, before cocking his head to the side. It took a few seconds for it to sink in, but it finally clicked in Kendall's head.

"Of course!" The blond exclaimed, causing James to let out a chuckle. "Like, I knew you were James Diamond, but I didn't realise it was Diamond Diamond"

"The one and only" James replied, letting out a little chuckle, one that Kendall seemed to match.

The conversation seemed to hit a lull, but neither of them minded, just enjoying the other's company, especially when it was so unexpected. Their eye contact seemed to linger, the two of them staring into the other's eyes as a sense of comfort come over then, but when a beep from the card scanner occurred, they both seemed to be knocked out of their small fantasy world.

"Well, I best be off, I'm got some things to sort out. But, I'll see you later yeah?" James asked, causing Kendall to let out a little laugh.

"You're not stalking me are you?" the blond asked, causing James to become all flustered as he tried to answer.

"What, no of course not. I just didn't know if you where working or…"

"I was only joking" Kendall said, before leaning up to place a kiss onto James' cheek. "And I am working, so I'll see you later" the blond smiled, before waving James goodbye as he headed towards the lifts.

As Kendall walked away, James just stood there with a huge smile on his face, his hand raising to the point that Kendall kissed. Turning around, he saw the blond disappear behind the lift doors, and with a new found determination, James headed out of the building.

* * *

As the lift doors shut, Kendall let out a breath he didn't even know he was holding. Kendall had wanted to do something like that since the first time he'd saw James, and now that he'd done it once, he knew that he wanted to do it again.

 _'Why am I getting such a craving from just a kiss on the cheek?'_ Kendall thought to himself, but he didn't have a lot of time to think about it as the lift doors opened.

Storing his stuff in his locker, and pulling out a USB he'd use to store the data on, Kendall made his way over to the super computer that the lab offered him. As Kendall plugged in the USB, he began to input all the data he knew before setting the computer to generate and run scenarios for what Pulsewave could have.

With the limited data that Kendall actually had, 1000 scenarios showed up, causing the blond to let out a groan. Even with the super computer, it would take a few hours for him to get through all of this lot, but it wasn't like he had a lot planned or a lot of choice. Pressing enter, the computer began to review the data, as well as displaying the first scenario, the blond watching intently in the hopes that he'd gotten lucky on the first attempt.

However, when this scenario required the power of a nuclear explosion, Kendall quickly moved onto the next, his time here already dragging.

It wasn't until a couple hundred scenarios in that Kendall finally found something, and the blond kicked himself at how obvious the solution was once he'd found it.

"He's not generating energy, he's vibrating the air around him at a high frequency before firing it. Ugh, why didn't I think of this!" Kendall said out loud as he let his head lull back. It all made sense, and when he looked back on it now, it would explain the breeze he felt pass over him as he hit the ground, it was the air rushing back in to fill the pressure back.

Once the annoyance over his stupidity had passed, Kendall couldn't help the grin that grew on his face. Now that he knew something about it, everything else would be easier for him to figure out. Cracking his knuckles, Kendall said "Come on computer, we've got a lot of research to do" before typing furiously into the machine, wondering how the man would be able to harness the power, as well as how he used the gauntlets without killing himself.

* * *

 **So there we have it! Kendall couldn't stop thinking about the Pulsewave fight, and now he's finally figured out how Pulsewave does it, and James had a argument with his dad about him being ill, with a mention of what happened to his mum. Is this foreshadowing maybe? Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and we even got a little bit of Kames in it!**

 **I want to give a massive thank you to Guest, Winterschild11 and RainbowDiamonds for reviewing the last chapter and I'm so glad you all enjoyed it! Kendall has certainly met his match with Pulsewave, but hopefully he's on the track to overcome him. Especially know that he knows how Pulsewave is doing it! Also, RainbowDiamonds, you keep mentioning that this story is reminding you of Superman, but I'm actually basing it loosely off of Spider Man, so it makes me chuckle at how similar they are and I can definitely see where you're coming from! I have to admit, I've never watched Smallville but by the sounds of it, it's definitely something that I'd enjoy. Maybe I'll have to check it out.**

 **Anyway, I will see you all on Thursday for the next chapter of Rush & Response, but until then,**

 **TTFN 😃**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! Thank you all so much for the support on the last chapter, and let's crack on with this shall we?**

* * *

As Kendall stood over the workbench, suit laid out and equipment in hand, he remember what it was like when he created his first suit, reminiscing about the blue ski mask he used to pull over his head to hide his face, while he was still dressed in jeans and a long-sleeve t-shirt. High school was definitely a weird time for the blond, with him figuring out both his powers as well as his sexuality, so while Kendall could look back on it fondly now, at the time, it was definitely difficult for him.

The blond shook his head, getting slightly off topic with his train of thought as he added the new lining into his suit, hoping that it would do him some good. The computer simulation he'd ran stated that Pulsewave would have to use something similar to this in order to be able to withstand the force of vibrating the air so by installing it into his suit, then surely Kendall would be able to do the same. At least that was the blond's thought pattern, and never in his life had he been more grateful that he worked at a company such as Diamond Inc, especially with their leading research and abundance of equipment, meaning that he could just 'borrow' the materials he needed to make it work.

 _'Damn, nanobots are useful'_ Kendall thought to himself as he finished adding the new lining before moving over to his workstation in order to upload the coding that would be necessary to make them work. The nanobots are microscopic robots that Diamond Inc have been working on for a while now, and their range of capabilities are unlimited. Nanobots work so that you can program them to do whatever you wanted them to do (within reason of course, since Diamond Inc didn't want to be responsible if they were used for harm) but with the right know how, their baseline coding can be changed.

In Kendall's case, the blond was using the nanobots as an interior lining in his suit, and as the blond plugged in his suit into his computer, he began to program the robots so that they would absorb the pulse fired at him. The nanobots would be able to move within the interior lining of the suit, making them able to concentrate onto the area that had been hit, or able to spread out across his entire body if that took the full force of the hit.

The problem with the nanobots at the moment however was the fact that due to their size, they'd only be able to absorb a certain amount before they had to release it, although Kendall has a plan for that as well. With the code finally inputted, Kendall watched as the progress bar slowly began to fill, uploading the new data onto the nanobots in his suit, and finally with a chance to relax, Kendall took a deep breath as he looked around the lab, however his mind seemed to flick back to the brunet that he'd seen earlier in the lobby.

Kendall hadn't though to much about it at the time, with him mostly thinking about the kiss he'd given James, but looking back on it now, Kendall reflected on what James had said about him being a Diamond, and Kendall couldn't help but think what James' life was like because of that. It was clear that James worked, with him coming into the café every night with a new news article to write, but Kendall started to wonder if the brunet even needed to. It was clear that the Diamond's were loaded, with this tower itself being just one example of that, as well as all the different research projects that were underway, so Kendall began to wonder why James was working at all? As well as that, he also began to wonder why James seemed to turn up at the café every night. Surely someone like that would have lots to parties and high profile events to go to, so why did he bother coming into a small, quaint café?

 _'Stop being so judgemental Kendall!'_ His brain supplied, causing him to let out a soft sigh. His brain was right, he needed to stop overthinking all of this. It was clear that James definitely isn't the usual 'rich boy' type and really if anything, Kendall should be happy that he isn't. The beep behind him snapped him out of this thought process, turning around to see that the upload had been completed.

That when an even louder beep sounded, causing the blond to let out a small surprised yelp as he reached into his pocket for his phone. He had half an hour until his job at the café started, meaning that Kendall had spent all day in the lab.

"Fuck" He yelled to himself as he unplugged his suit from his computer before running over to his memory stick in the supercomputer and taking that out as well. In his state of panic, Kendall shoved everything into his bag before essentially sprinting out of the lab, completely oblivious to the fact that the supercomputer hadn't closed down properly.

* * *

As James sat down in his usual booth, he glanced around waiting to see the blond and it was only when the door to the back of the building barrelled open, that he finally noticed the blond, who looked a little flushed and sweaty. When Kendall looked over at him, they locked eyes, and Kendall couldn't help the small blush that grew on his face as he started to walk over to James.

"Hey" the blond said as he approached, causing James to raise an eyebrow at him slightly, due to the panting that Kendall was doing.

"Hey, you alright?" James asked, causing Kendall to nod his head slightly as he let out a soft chuckle.

"I had to run here from my apartment. I left the lab a little late and I didn't have my uniform on me, so I had to run home and grab it before running here. I'm a little out of breath" Kendall replied, causing James to let out a little chuckle as he shook his head.

"So, I'm guessing this brilliant idea turned out to be successful then" James joked, causing Kendall to frown slightly before he remembered the half-truth he'd told James earlier, causing him to let out a little chuckle.

"Unfortunately, not" Kendall replied, with a shrug. "But I managed to get some little bits done around the lab. I guess I just lost track of time" he continued, letting out another little chuckle to keep the atmosphere light. "Anyway, you want a coffee?"

"That would be great thanks." James replied, causing Kendall to nod and turn but before he could walk away, James quickly added "and it was nice to see you earlier" causing Kendall to blush slightly.

"Same with you" Kendall replied, giving James to small smile before he headed off to get James his coffee. It was clear to the brunet that from that moment on, he was not going to get any work done, his mind constantly reviewing the small encounters that he and Kendall had had together, especially the kiss, meaning that James would spend the next few hours trying to build the confidence to ask the blond out on a date. Kendall seemed to move effortlessly around the café, delivering people's food, talking their orders and delivering their coffee, and when the blond seemed to approach James, he couldn't help the way his heart fluttered.

"So, what are you working on tonight then?" Kendall asked as he poured James his coffee, the brunet shrugging as a response.

"Not much really. I just have to finish off a piece I was writing earlier today" James replied, causing Kendall to quirk an eyebrow at the blond.

"On a Saturday?" Kendall asked a smirk growing on his face, causing James to chuckle considering it was the same thing that he'd asked Kendall earlier.

"I see what you did there!" James pointed out, causing Kendall to chuckle before James continued. "And apparently Blizzard doesn't rest on the weekends so neither do I. My father was right" he added, causing Kendall to raise an eyebrow at him, which the brunet just waved off.

"Well, I'll let you get back to it. Let me know when you need some more" Kendall replied, causing James to nod as the blond walked off. That's practically how the night continued, with James typing out ways after ways to ask Kendall out as the blond periodically refilled his coffee. James was unsure if Kendall ever caught a glimpse of his screen, but if he was being perfectly honest, it probably would have made it easier if he did. That way Kendall would know what James was trying to say when he inevitably stumbled over his words later.

So, when Kendall came over later that evening, James took a deep breath. "Hey, it's coming up to closing time" Kendall said, as he reached for James coffee cup and added it to the tray he was currently carrying.

"Thanks for letting me know" James smiled, closing his laptop down as he took a deep breath. "So, you know earlier that I mentioned that maybe we should like go on a date if we, you know, wanted to chat and that?" James continued, causing Kendall to raise his eyebrow at the brunet.

"Yeah?"

"Well, I was wondering if maybe you were free tomorrow night? If not, it's totally ok, and if you don't want to go on a date either that's ok, but if you do, then I'd like too to, and I'm free tomorrow" James rambled, a small blush growing on his face as he spoke.

Of course, as he spoke Kendall's blush grew as well and when James finally stopped rambling and he looked up at Kendall, he saw how the blond was smiling at him. "Yeah, I'd like that. And I am free tomorrow."

"Great!" James enthused, as he began to pack his stuff away, a massive smile on his face as he continued. "It about 6 good for you? We could go for some dinner or something? Whatever you want"

"That sounds good." Kendall replied, as James slung his laptop bag over his shoulder. "I have your number, so I'll text you my address" Kendall continued, watching as James stood up from his table.

"That sounds perfect" James nodded, before leaning in to give Kendall a hug.

Of course, as soon as he tried, his abdomen bumped into the tray Kendall was holding, causing a few things to fall over. Luckily nothing was filled, so nothing was spilt on Kendall, but James still gasped and jumped back as the things clattered together. "God, I forgot that was there. I'm so sorry" he said, causing Kendall to chuckle.

"Don't worry about it." Kendall shrugged, placing the tray down into the table before James pulled him into a hug again. "And I'll see you tomorrow" Kendall added, pecking James on the cheek again before they both pulled out.

"Yeah, see you tomorrow" James smiled, waving to Kendall as he walked out of the café, a massive smile on his face.

* * *

"I can't believe we've been called into work this morning. It's a Sunday James, a Sunday!" Camille moaned, as the two of them walked into the Dispatch Weekly building. "And I mean, who even reads these monthly special editions anymore, and why are they still published on actual paper? I mean, the internet exists! I could be writing this in the comfort of my own home in bed, and not at the office at 9 am" Camille continued to rant, causing James to let out a little chuckle as he pressed the button to call the lift.

Of course, James wasn't really paying any attention to what Camille was saying, but rather was thinking about the date that he had with Kendall later. He was still trying to figure out where to take the blond, consider he didn't really know a lot about Kendall. From what he could gather however, he didn't think that Kendall would enjoy a massively high profile and snooty restaurant, which was actually good for James as well, considering he didn't enjoy those types of places either Maybe Kendall would be into a small diner type setting, with good wholesome food?

"James are you even listening to me?" Camille asked, causing James to glance over at her, only to realise she was staring at him.

"Yeah, and I know it's a pain, but we can get this done by midday if we power through." James replied, as the lift doors opened. "Plus, we're not the only department that's in. Sports, weather and entertainment are also in." he shrugged as he and Camille walked over to their desks. "We only need to focus on the local news."

"You're in a good mood this morning…I don't like it" Camille replied, causing James to let out a soft chuckle as he put his laptop bag down onto the desk, removing his laptop from it. "And why are you this so happy?" She asked, causing James to shrug.

"I don't know. It might be because of my date this evening" James answered, trying to be nonchalant despite the fact that he was massively giddy for it. Camille, of course, gasped at the news, turning around so that she should stare at him face to face.

"A date? It is with the cute coffee lad?" she questioned, causing James to shrug as a response, but his face gave it away with the blush he'd gained. "It is! God, I'm so happy for you! How'd you manage that?"

"Hey!" James joked, rolling his eyes playfully causing her to chuckle before he launched into the story. "And I finally built up enough courage to ask him. We ran into each other yesterday in Diamond Inc, turns out he works there as a research on the glacier project I think he said. Anyway, so I joked saying about how we should go on a date if we wanted to talk to each other, and he blushed and chuckled and once we finished talking, he gave me a small kiss on the cheek"

"No way!"

"Uh huh. So that night, I went back to the café, and he was working-"

"Which you knew because you're a stalker"

"-and at the end of the night, I asked him if we wanted to go on a date with me. I started to get a little nervous, but he said that he'd like to, so I'm picking him up at 6 tonight from his apartment."

"Any idea where you're gonna take him? You gonna flash that Diamond cash?" Camille asked, causing James to roll his eyes at her.

"You know I don't want to do that. In fact, he didn't even know that I was a Diamond until I saw him in the building, and I told him I was visiting my dad. Anyway, I was thinking of taking him to a diner or something. That way the food will be good, and the atmosphere will be light, so we can talk properly. There's nothing worse than being in a restaurant where it's so quiet you don't want to talk" James replied, causing Camille to nod as she opened up her own laptop.

"You could always take him to Joe's. I go there all the time. They've got good food, and it's the perfect place for chatting because they've got quiet music in the background so there's always some noise in there"

"That sounds good. Do you mind sending me the address?" James asked, causing Camille to grin at him.

"Not at all" she replied, a small smile growing on James' lips.

He had the date, and the location, now all he had to worry about was what to wear.

* * *

"You look fine. Just stop worrying, it's only going to make you worse" Kendall told himself as he stared into the mirror in his bedroom. The blond was wearing a long sleeve burgundy oxford shirt, a pair of skinny black jeans as well as his best pair of boots but the more he look at himself, the more he started to doubt it.

"It's fine Kendall. You've gone for a smart casual look. But, what if he's taking me to somewhere formal and I'm supposed to be wearing a tux? I don't own a tux!" the blond continued to rave, turning around to try and find something else to wear from his wardrobe, of which half the contents were throughout his room, whether it being on the bed or on the floor.

The blond sighed when he couldn't think of anything else to wear, knowing that this had been about the sixth time he'd done this tonight. "It'll be fine Kendall, just breathe and relax. I mean, you've faced psychopaths with knifes and guns before, so I'm pretty sure you can handle a date" he finally said, taking a deep breath before turning to look at himself in the mirror again, properly reviewing the outfit this time. The shirt clung to him perfectly in the right places, and the jeans did the same thing. Plus, his shoes were comfy and weren't going to rub, so that always helped.

That's when he noticed the small patch of white pocking out from under the collar and the blond was quick to tuck it away as he sighed. He'd debated for a good 10 minutes whether he should wear his suit or not, but he finally settled on the fact that he probably should. Nothing has been heard about Pulsewave for quiet a few days now, and knowing the blond's luck, it would be tonight of all night that something finally happened.

Still, the blond prayed that that wouldn't be the case.

With Kendall feeling comfortable in his outfit, and his hair styled so that it was an organised mess, the blond set out to clean his room back up, and that's when the doorbell finally sounded. The blond jumped at the noise, picking as many clothes up as he could and throwing them into his wardrobe before walking to the front door.

With his hand on the latch, the blond took one last deep breath before he opened the door.

* * *

 **So there we have it! Set up for the Kames date that will happen in the next chapter! As well as a little bit of Kendall sorting his suit out and James chatting to Camille! I hope you all enjoyed!**

 **I want to say a massive thank you to Winterschild11, Guest, XxxAnimaniacxxX** **and RainbowDiamonds for reviewing the last chapter and I'm so glad that you all liked it! Kendall does seem to be a little bit of a secret genius, I have to admit but at least now he's got a few things in case Pulsewave decided to attack, and you all seemed to want James to finally ask Kendall out, so I hope I did it justice in this chapter! Don't worry, next week will be the date so you won't have to wait long for that! Also, I'm so happy to hear that you guys are really enjoying this story! I have to admit, so far I'm absolutely loving writing it, so it makes it so much better to hear that you're loving it as well!**

 **Anyway, I will see you all on Thursday for the next chapter of Rush and Response, but until then,**

 **TTFN 😃**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! So, this chapter we finally get a Kames date, and we even learn a little bit of James' history! So, let's crack on with it, shall we?**

* * *

James smiled as the door opened, Kendall stood there with a shy smile on his face. "Hey" the blond said, blushing slightly as he saw James' glance over his body taking in what he was wearing. It made him definitely feel self-conscious, but by the smile on James' face, hid outfit was definitely doing its job.

"Hey, you look really good" James replied with, causing Kendall's blush to deepen as he glanced at what the brunet was wearing. He was in a pair of black skinny jeans that seemed to cling to his legs perfectly, as well a white shirt with a blazer thrown over the top. What made it even better in Kendall's opinion was the pair of glasses that sat on James' nose, perfectly framing his hazel eyes.

"So do you" Kendall replied, James' own cheeks blushing slightly as he fidgeted where he stood, while the two men stilled maintained eye contact. Kendall wasn't quite sure what it was about James' eyes, but they were almost hypnotic, and the blond felt like he could get lost in them for days, much like James felt when he looked in Kendall's green eyes.

Luckily, James snapped out of it first, when he heard someone shutting the door down the corridor. "So, are you ready to go?" the brunet said, causing Kendall to blink a few times as his head cleared.

"Um, just give me a few seconds, I need to grab my phone, wallet and bits" Kendall replied, causing James to nod as the blond rushed away from the door.

With the chance in front of him, James found himself stepping into Kendall's apartment slightly as he took the space in. It seemed to be divided into three different rooms, with there being an open plan kitchen, living door section, as well as a toilet and a bedroom. The apartment was definitely smaller that James' was, but the brunet found Kendall's apartment to be more…homely than his was. There were a few little knick-knacks scattered around the place, as well as a few framed photos and Kendall's diploma hanging off of the walls. Before James managed to get a good look at any of them however, the blond returned, now with a coat over his outfit.

"Ready?" James asked once again, causing Kendall to nod as he began to pat down his trousers as if to be certain.

"Ready" the blond replied, James leading the way out of the blond's apartment, before Kendall shut the door and locked it. As the two of them walked down the corridor, James took a risk, and extended his hand out for Kendall to hold it.

The blond certainly seemed aware of it, by how he blushed, and after taking a deep breath, Kendall found himself reaching out and grabbing it, his fingers linking with James'. With their hands intertwined, James found himself shuddering slightly as he realised how cold Kendall's hand were, and Kendall must have picked up on it, by the way he raised his eyebrow slightly at James.

"Sorry, it's just, you're hands are really cold" James said, causing Kendall to cast his eyes to the floor.

"Sorry" the blond responded, letting go of James' hand only to realise that the brunet hadn't let go himself.

"It's alright" he chuckled, shaking his hand slightly so that Kendall would take the hint and link their fingers back together. "It's actually quite refreshing, soothing almost" he continued, causing Kendall's blush to return as he intertwined their fingers once more, the two of them finally making it out of Kendall's building.

"So, were are we going?" The blond asked, following James' lead as they began to walk down the street.

"A small diner called Joe's, I don't know if you've heard of it?" James asked, causing Kendall to shake his head. "Well, the food's supposed to be excellent and it's supposed to have a good atmosphere. I wasn't quite sure what you'd like so I thought this would be the best bet" James began to ramble causing Kendall to squeeze his hand as the blond let out a chuckle.

"Sounds perfect" Kendall replied, causing James' nerves to settle slightly. It was going well so far.

* * *

As the two of them approached the diner, a smile seemed to grace Kendall's face at the authenticity of the place. It was a typical American dinner, with Kendall seeing refitted bar stools lining the bar, as well as new red booths lined up against the window, as well as some scattered about in the interior. Kendall had always loved placed like this, with the blond loving the aesthetic and atmosphere the places always seemed to carry, and this place was certainly no exception. James also couldn't help the smile that grew on his face, but that was more due to the blond's reaction, James being so glad that he could make the blond so happy.

"Want to head in?" James asked, when he noticed the blond staring, causing Kendall to nod vigorously as he almost dragged James in with him from the speed he took off. Pushing the doors open, Kendall glanced around for a few seconds, really taking in the feel of the place and relishing in the quiet music that was playing.

"Take a seat whether and I'll be over in a second" the woman behind the bar said to the two of them, causing them both to nod as Kendall spotted an open booth by the window. The place was moderately busy, which was perfect for their date, as it meant that the two of them could chat without fear of anyone overhearing them, but it also wasn't too loud as to make it awkward.

"I love this place" Kendall said to James as they approached the booth, causing James to let out a small chuckle.

"That's good to hear. I'm glad I'm getting it right so far" James replied, as he took a seat on one side of the booth, Kendall sitting opposite him, chuckling at James' joke. As the two of them reached for the menu's, the woman from behind the bar came over, asking for their drink's orders.

With Kendall ordering a Bacardi and Coke, and James ordering a Budweiser, they both began to glance over their menu's, Kendall starting up conversation again. "So, how was your day?"

"Yeah, it was alright. I worked this morning for a little while as we had to get the monthly special edition out and then I chilled at my apartment for a bit. What about you?"

"Oh not much. I spent most of the morning watching TV, and then I spent most of the afternoon reading myself for this" Kendall replied, letting out a soft chuckle at his self-depreciation. "I must have gone through about 5 outfits before I settled on this one"

"Well, I'm sure you would have looked amazing in whatever you wore" James replied with, causing Kendall to blush again.

"Thanks" the blond replied, his eyes quickly glancing down at the menu before he stared at James even more.

"So, I've been meaning to ask, what is it you do exactly at Diamond Inc?" James asked, causing Kendall to lower his menu slightly.

"Oh, I'm an intern for the glaciers project" Kendall replied, causing James to raise his eyebrow at him, in slightly confusion.

"The glaciers project?" James asked, causing Kendall to chuckle.

"Yeah, we're working on battling the effects of climate change, focusing on trying to reverse the melting of glaciers in order to reduce the amount of surface water entering the oceans" Kendall explained, causing James to shake his head.

"Wow, that definitely sounds impressive, and you must be pretty smart in order to be working as part of it" James replied, causing Kendall to blush.

"It's nothing really. If anything, I'm surprised that you didn't know about it, with Mr Diamond being your dad and all" Kendall commented, causing James to shrug, as his eyes glanced down at the menu.

"Well, my dad and I don't really chat about his work" James replied, Kendall seeing the brief pain on his face, before it was covered up again. Before Kendall could say anything however, the waitress came over to drop off their drinks and take their order, distracting the two of them from their previous conversation, and once their orders were taken, James seemed to be back to his usual chipper self. Debating whether to say anything or not, Kendall finally took the risk.

"I'm sorry I mentioned your dad" the blond said, causing James to shrug slightly as if he wasn't bothered but Kendall knew that he was.

"It's fine" James replied, causing Kendall to let out a small sigh, as he reached forward to cover James' hand with his own.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Kendall asked, squeezing James' hand to show his support.

"It's nothing really." James said, looking up at Kendall to see the worry that was swirling in the blond's eyes. "It's just, he's ill and I'm really worried about him, but he doesn't want to do anything about it. When I saw you in his building the other day, I'd had an argument with him over it because he's refusing to see a specialist, so it's just weighing on my mind slightly. I'm sorry, you don't need to hear about my family's problems. You know how family can be. They can be stubborn when they want to be" James said, letting out a little chuckle to try and lighten the moment until he noticed how Kendall's eyes were downcast to the table.

"I don't actually" the blond said, glancing back up at James with a sad look on his face. "I don't really have any family. My dad died when I was four, so it was just me and my mum for a little while. She died giving birth to my sister, but I don't know who she is because she was adopted before I could meet her. I know she's out there, but I have no clue who she is" Kendall explained, feeling James hand slip out from under his before recovering his hand in it.

"Kendall, I'm so sorry! I didn't know. I'm sorry if I've offended you or anything" James apologised, causing Kendall to shake his head as he squeezed James' hand.

"It's fine, don't worry" the blond replied, flashing James a small smile before he took a sip of his drink to give and refresh himself, James doing the same thing.

"Well, since you opened up about your past, I should probably do the same thing" James said, letting out a soft chuckle as he put his bottle back down on the table. "I wasn't always like this, as a teenager I was a bit of a jackass."

"Really?" Kendall asked, as he tried to imagine James as a rebellious teenager.

"Oh yeah. I'd go to parties when I was underage, and I'd do drugs and all sorts of shit while I was at them. It was really bad when I was 17 and my mum died. I'd be out every night, drinking or doing drugs and then I'd turn up to school the next day drunk, hungover or high. I was failing all of my classes, but I didn't care. I thought that I'd just live off my dad's money, so I didn't need to try" James continued, taking another sip of his drink.

"So, what happened?"

"One day I walked into school, and I was called into my tutor's office. I was hungover, and about 2 hours late, so I was convinced that he'd just give me a bollocking and that I'd be expelled again. Instead, when I got there, he told me that I'd be taking a week out of school to work in a homeless shelter, helping them out, feeding the people, serving coffee, that kind of stuff. Of course, I tried to refuse, saying that I didn't want to go near 'those type of people' but my tutor didn't care. He just said that starting the day after, I needed to be at the shelter and that if I wasn't, then I'd be kicked out of the school, and I wouldn't be able to complete my high school diploma. So, the next day I rocked up to the shelter, not wanting to be there and hoping that I'd be sent home" James explained, Kendall nodding along as he took a sip of his drink.

"I'm guessing you hated it?" Kendall asked, causing James to let out a little chuckle as he nodded his head. "At first, I resented every single second I was there. I thought the people in the shelter were dirty and disgusting and I practically avoided contact with most of them the first day. I refused to do a lot of the work, but luckily the people at the shelter put up with me. I remember going in the second day, and seeing a mother with two kids sat on one of the beds while some of the staff helped provide them with some new clothes. As the day continued, I couldn't seem to get them out of my head, even though I thought that I didn't care about them. One of the staff members must have saw me staring at them because she told me to grab a tray of food and take it over to them, and after a little bit of arguing, I did. When I walked over to them with the food, their faces lit up, and they thanked me profusely for helping to feed them. I asked why they were in here, and the mother said that her husband had died so they weren't able to pay the bills on their home as well as the fees for the funeral. They gave their husband and father a nice service and within a week, they were evicted from their home."

"That's awful" Kendall said, squeezing James' hand once again as the brunet nodded.

"That what I thought. I mean, were was someone who was in exactly the same position as me and my dad, with them losing someone close to them, and yet they were having to sleep in a homeless shelter while I was living in a luxury penthouse, with everything I ever wanted. It really got to me. So, when I started the next day, I did everything I was told to do. I helped served the food without complaint, I washed a lot of clothes and I listened to everyone's story learning why a lot of people where in there. Some were drug addicts or gambling addicts that lost all of their money, but a lot of people were abandoned by their families or had lost everything due to something that was out of their control. I learnt a lot about both people and myself by the time the week had ended."

"So what happened? When you returned to school?" Kendall asked, taking another sip of his drink.

"Well, firstly I turned up on time, in the correct uniform and completely sober. I remember the shock on my tutor's face when I walked into form on time. He excused me from my first lesson, and the two of us sat down and talked about what had happened that week, and I found myself admitting everything to him. He just sat there and listened to it all, and once I'd finished talking, he suggested that I wrote a piece about it, talking about homelessness in the city, and how much help the shelters could be, and that's how I discovered my love for journalism. From that moment on, I spent a lot of time volunteering at the shelter, and I even donated a lot of my money to help them out. By the time I started university, I was a changed person. I realised that I wanted to give someone back to the community, in order to try and help out in any way I can, and I thought the best way I could do that was by telling the real stories and informing people about the issues in the city, as well as what's being done to help solve them. I guess it's why I was so drawn to Blizzard" James finally finished, taking a sip of his drink while Kendall just stared at him.

"Wow, that's…wow" was all the blond said, causing James to let out a little chuckle. "That's incredible" Kendall continued, causing James to blush slightly as the two of them stared into each other's eyes.

Nothing needed to be said, both of them being able to read what the other was thinking by the emotion swirling in each other's eyes, and it was clear to the both of them that they really wanted this to work. By the time the food was delivered, the two of them probably hadn't spoken in about 5 minutes as they both reflected on what was said, feeling completely comfortable in each other's company.

* * *

As the two walked out of Joe's, hand in hand, Kendall couldn't help the sigh that escaped his mouth at how perfectly the date had gone. After the two of them shared their pasts with each other, they found conversation easy and this time, they managed to keep it light with them both sharing some of their funnier experiences with each other.

So, as they walked down the street, James spoke up again. "I really enjoyed tonight" the brunet began, Kendall nodding along with him. "It was nice to be able to spend some proper time with you, and get you know you a little more. Maybe, we could head back to my apartment and we could continue to chat? You know, if you want to?" James asked, a small blush growing both on his and Kendall's face. The blond was naïve, he knew what would happen if he did head back to James' house and he couldn't say that he was exactly against the idea.

Just before he could respond however, he heard an all too familiar sound pip from his phone, as well as James' and he couldn't help but internally groan at the noise, knowing that this would happen. The two of them both pulled out their phones, to receive the notification was the police that both Lexington Street and 25th Avenue had been closed due to the fact that the Myriad Bank on the corner of the two of them had been hit and the blond couldn't help the sigh that escaped his mouth.

"I'm sorry James. I would love too, but I have to be in the lab early tomorrow morning, and I can't afford to be late again" Kendall lied, knowing that he had to go and save the bank. When he saw the disappointment on James' face, Kendall couldn't help but lean up and place a kiss onto his lips. "However, maybe we can do this again sometime?" he asked, causing James to flash him a small smile.

"Yeah, I'd like that. Do you want me to walk you home?" James asked, causing Kendall to shake his head.

"I'll be fine thanks. Goodnight James" Kendall replied, causing James to lean down and place a kiss onto Kendall's lips.

"Goodnight Kendall" James responded, Kendall giving the brunet a brief wave before he took off walking in the direction that his flat was in.

When James wasn't looking however, Kendall found himself running down an alley way, before he began to strip out of his clothes, revealing the suit underneath. "God damn it" Kendall mumbled to himself as he pulled the mask over his face, before he took off skating. "Why can't I just have one night off?"

* * *

 **So there we have it! Kames went on their date and the two of them both opened up about their past to each other, with James admitting that he wasn't always the guy that he is now, while Kendall admitted about this family. Of course, as many as you expected, the date was then interrupted by a bank robbery, meaning that Kendall couldn't go home with James! Still, I wanted the two of them to at least have the whole meal together, so I hope you all enjoyed!**

 **I want to say a massive thank you to Guest, Winterschild11 and RainbowDiamonds for reviewing the last chapter and I'm so glad you all enjoyed it! You all seem to be wondering what Kendall leaving the supercomputer will lead to and don't worry, he will get to that in the future! You also wanted Kames to get their date, so I hope you all enjoyed this!**

 **I will see you on Thursday for the next chapter of Rush & Response, but until then,**

 **TTFN 😃**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! I have to admit, I'm super excited to present his chapter to you, so let's crack on with it, shall we?**

* * *

As Kendall skated around the corner on the approach to the bank, he was greeted with what seemed to be a whole army of police forces standing by on the road. The whole area was in lock down, with no pedestrians in sight and that caused Kendall to relax ever so slightly. The last thing he needed was civilian casualties. The second thing the blond noticed was the lack of noise that was coming from the bank. The blond had expected there to be some sort of indication that Pulsewave was in there, especially with the flashy exit the villain had made last time, but other than the sound of sirens and the chatting of the cops, he heard nothing. Curious as to what this meant, Kendall skated down next to Chief Garcia, who seemed relieved by his presents.

"Thank god you're here. I've been waiting for you to arrive before I did anything. Wanted to know we had the back-up" Carlos greeted him, causing the blond to nod.

"That sounds like a good call" Kendall replied, flashing Carlos a small smile. "So, tell me what you know. Has anything happened, or has there been any move of violence?"

"Nothing and none" Carlos replied, causing Kendall to raise an eyebrow at him. "We knew the bank had been hit, because someone sounded the silent alarm, but when we got here, everyone that was inside the bank was stood out on the curb. He's not holding any hostages and from what I've been told, he didn't harm anyone when he walked in. He simply destroyed one of the internal doors before telling everyone to get out. We've been out here for 5 minutes now, with our sirens are blaring, but he's made no move against us either. He's just refused to follow any directions that we've given him."

"So, he's feeling cocky" Kendall replied, causing Carlos to shrug.

"Maybe. Normally with these types of robberies, they use hostages to ensure a safe get-away but from what we've seen from last time, it's clear that he's not worried about making one of those"

"What's concerning me is the lack of noise" Kendall stated, Carlos nodding along with him as he turned to face the bank.

"It is a little disconcerting. We've heard nothing from inside there since we've been here. For all we know, he hasn't even hit the vault yet. I'm sure we would have heard some commotion if he had" Carlos replied, causing Kendall to nod as he began to roll his shoulder.

"Then, it's probably about time that I got in there. Keep your men outside until I say it's safe. I want everyone here to be able to go back to their families"

"Are you sure you're going to be able to do this by yourself?" Carlos asked, causing Kendall to let out a little shrug.

"I'm going to try. We've seen what this guy is capable of Chief and I don't want to be risking any more lives than necessary. Plus, I've made some adjustments to my suit since the last time we saw him, and I'm confident they'll give me the upper hand"

"Alright, but just know that if you do need the back-up, everyone here is ready to assist you." Carlos said, causing Kendall to nod as he flashed the captain a small smile. "And…just stay safe. This city needs you Blizzard" the Latino added, causing Kendall to let out a little chuckle.

"I'll try" Kendall replied, nodding at Carlos once more before beginning to skate over to the bank doors, the whole time, Kendall giving himself a mental pep talk.

 _'You can do this! Sure, it's a little more dangerous than the usual stuff that you do, but you've got this! Plus, like Chief Carlos said, you've got support if you need it!'_ His brain supplied as he finally stopped outside of the bank doors.

Taking one final deep breath, Kendall found himself pushing them open, feeling ready for whatever greeted him.

* * *

As he walked in, Kendall couldn't help but notice the clear lack of damage to the building. Everything looked as if there wasn't a crazed super villain in the place, and the only indication that he was there seemed to be the broken door that Carlos had mentioned earlier. The golden chandelier still hung from the ceiling, and all of the safety glass that protected the cashiers seemed to be in place.

Like Carlos had also mentioned, Kendall couldn't spot any sign of any hostages, with the place being completely empty. The whole atmosphere caused Kendall to get shivers. Normally a bank like this wouldn't put the blond on edge, but the fact that the once bustling space was now empty seemed to set him off. Walking further into the building, still with no sign of Pulsewave in sight, Kendall found himself taking a deep breath before shouting out.

"Hello? Is there a crazed psychopath I can talk to about taking out a loan?" he called, his voice echoing against the walls, before the bank fell silent again. "Hello?" Kendall called out again, as he stepped into the centre of the large room.

The blond spun on the spot, taking the entire place in as he tried to find Pulsewave and that's when all the safety glass around him completely shattered. The blond jumped at the sound that it made, spinning on the spot a little faster to try and finds its origin, only to have no luck.

"Seriously dude? You're not going to come out and face me after that? You're missing a top quality entrance opportunity here. Frankly, I don' think you deserve the title of a super-villain" he yelled, facing the direction of the vault. Within seconds of that happened, he saw a wooden desk get launched at him, causing the blond to startle slightly. With his few seconds to react, Kendall found himself ducking on the spot, the desk narrowly missing his head as the wooden object slammed into the door behind him, splintering into pieces.

"Will you just shut up!" A voice boomed from in front of him, Pulsewave appearing as he fired a blast of air at Kendall, the blond skating out of the way just in time for it to narrowly miss him.

"But I like the sound of my own voice!" Kendall mock whined back, launching an ice blast at the villain, which was quickly shattered when Pulsewave launched another blast of air, Kendall leaping out of the way of that one as well.

Taking a quick glance around, Kendall found himself launching another ice shard towards Pulsewave to distract the villain, while he skated around to a better defensive position, with the blond situating himself behind a pillar. This way, he was sheltered from Pulsewave's attack, while also being able to keep an eye on him.

"Come on man! Why don't we talk about this! Why are you doing this?" Kendall shouted, peeking out from behind the pillar enough to see that Pulsewave was firing another blast of air, causing him to duck back in. The blast of air hit the pillar and Kendall could feel it shift behind him. Clearly this place wasn't as structurally sound as Kendall has originally thought, meaning the blond had to be careful not to bring the roof down on both of them.

Seeing an opening from him to skate behind the security desk, Kendall shot another ice blast at Pulsewave before he began to skate away. This time, Kendall noticed the blast reaching his target, Pulsewave's gauntlets quickly becoming frozen together, and as the blond reached the desk, he didn't hide under it immediately, instead leaning against it as he wanted intently.

The blond heard Pulsewave let out a groan of annoyance before watching as the villain moved one of his thumbs onto a small button that was available on his gauntlet. As soon as the button was pressed, Kendall saw a few flaps on Pulsewave's suit open and just from looking at them, he could see the heat that they were extruding. As expected, the ice surrounding the gauntlets melted away instantly, the droplets of water dripping onto the floor.

Pulsewave rolled his shoulders back, a smile on his face at the freedom before firing his gauntlet's forwards, blasting air towards Kendall, who was now ducked under the desk, which was no help to him. Kendall felt the blast of air hit, causing the desk to flip up over him, leaving him completely exposed to Pulsewave's attacks. Before Kendall could react, the blond felt another blast of air hit him, causing him to be launched a few feet back, but luckily the new nanobots he'd installed seemed to do their job, taking the brunt of the force.

Quickly getting back onto his feet, Kendall skated behind another pillar, briefly leaning his head against it as he took a deep breath.

"I see you've made some upgrades since the last time we met" Pulsewave said as he fired another blast of air at the pillar Kendall was hiding behind. The pillar shifted slightly at its impact, Kendall becoming a little more concerned as Pulsewave continued to talk to him. "Whatever they are, they're not gonna stop me from killing you" he taunted, Kendall realising how annoying it actually was.

Another blast of air hit the pillar, and this time, Kendall knew that he had to move out from behind it. Talking one last deep breath, Kendall launched himself from behind it, skating away as he continuously fired ice blasts at Pulsewave. They were met with a continuous round of air blasts being fired back, Kendall taking a small section of the force from each of them, with just his back being caught most of the time. As Kendall skated past another pillar, Pulsewave launched a blast of air at him which, as expected, hit the pillar beside him.

That seemed to be it for the structure of the building, with cracks and fractures beginning to appear in all of the pillars surrounding him as they've been moved just enough so that they were unable to support the weight of the building anymore. Pulsewave was either completely oblivious to what was occurring, or didn't seem to care about the fact that the entire building was going to come down on top of them, with the villain firing more and more air blasts at the blond, who was now skating circles around Pulsewave dodging all of his attacks.

The blond had seconds to come up with a solution, as the fractures and cracks continued to grow around him, the roof crumbling slightly as it began to collapse and in a split second decision, Kendall found himself building a massive ice pillar in order to sustain the weight of the roof. Of course, as soon as his focus was off of the super-villain, Pulsewave launched a massive energy blast at the blond, causing him to go flying across the room, passing over the cashier desks before slamming his back into the wall and falling to the ground.

The blond was completely dazed, due to the force that he'd hit his head but even with his blurry vision, he was still able to make out Pulsewave firing a blast of air at the vault door, causing the metal object to buckle in the middle slightly as it fell to the ground. With one perfectly angled blast, Pulsewave fired the vault door over at Kendall, the heavy metal object now weighing down onto the blond, keeping him perfectly in place as he watched Pulsewave approach the store of money.

"I don't want to kill you Blizzard" Pulsewave said, his back turned to Kendall, giving the blond a perfect view of Pulsewave's power pack.

"Funny, I was just thinking the same thing" Kendall replied, feeling the power that the nanobot's held. Moving his arm so it was pointed directly at the power pack, Kendall channelled all of the energy into one final ditch effort, using the energy from the nanobots to help project a massive shard of ice. The shard whistled slightly as it flew through the air, before firmly lodging itself into the armour plating of the power pack, although Kendall frowned slightly when nothing seemed to come from it.

Instead, Pulsewave seemed to let out a little chuckle as he turned back towards the blond. "Looks like you aren't as good as you thought you were" the villain said, as he rolled his shoulder's back. "But now I'm going to have to kill you" he continued, causing Kendall to struggle slightly under the vault door, hoping to push the heavy metal object off of him.

As Pulsewave approached, the object only seemed to move a small amount, causing Kendall to let out a frustrated groan as he continued to try and move it. "Say bye, little dude" Pulsewave said, now stood over Kendall and as Pulsewave's gauntlets charged, Kendall noticed how the flaps on the back of his power pack opened, releasing the heat that they held.

As expected, that resulted in the ice shard melting, Kendall now watching as the once froze liquid began to run in through the vents, working its way through the electric systems. So, just as Pulsewave was about to fire his gauntlets, they both short circuited, with the super-villain instead receiving an electrical current running through him, causing him to shake before he collapsed to the floor.

Slightly grateful that he wasn't about to die, yet even more concerned that Pulsewave _had_ died, Kendall put all of his effort into pushing the vault door off of himself, the blond lifting it enough so that he was able to squirm his way out of it. Now free, Kendall found himself freezing Pulsewave's unconscious body to the floor before skating rapidly over to the bank doors, kicking them both open.

"I need a medic!" The blond shouted out, before skating back over to the villain in order to check of a pulse. Luckily, the blond found one, albeit very shallow one at that and before long, two EMT were at Kendall's side, along with Carlos, and a small handful of officers. It was only then, when the worry about Pulsewave had vanished that Kendall noticed the ache in his left leg causing the blond to lean against the closest wall.

"This must have been some fight. The place is trashed" Carlos said, as he approached Kendall, the blond letting out a breathless chuckle before Carlos raised an eyebrow at him. "You alright?"

"Just peachy" Kendall replied, watching as the police began to remove all of Pulsewave's equipment from his body, while others kept him restrained on the floor. "And you could say that. Just so you know, this place is very unstable, and that ice pillar is the only thing holding the roof up" the blond continued, causing Carlos to nod.

"I'll get someone on to fix that" he replied, watching as the blond tried to push himself off of the wall, only to wince in pain. Putting his arm around Kendall's waist, Carlos helped the blond up, causing Kendall to let out a breathless 'thank you.' "Are you sure you're ok? I can have the guys take a look at you" Carlos asked, causing Kendall to shake his head.

"I'm fine, and besides, if I let that happen, you might find out my identity" Kendall replied, letting out a little chuckle before their attention was drawn back to Pulsewave, who was resisting being put into cuffs.

"You're all gonna die! You're all doomed!" The villain shouted, causing both Kendall and Carlos to look over at him. "There's a rising storm about to hit Spirit City, and there's nothing you can do to stop it! Not even _you_ can stop it!" Pulsewave continued, nodding his head towards Kendall before being dragged away.

"What do you think he means by that?" Kendall asked, as Carlos helped him hobble out of the bank.

"I'm not sure, but if a crazed lunatic is shouting about it, then maybe we should be slightly worried" Carlos replied, causing Kendall to nod. "I'll tell the guys at SCIP to try and get some more information out of him. Although, I don't know how much they'll be able to get" the Latino continued, referring to the Spirit City Institutional Penitentiary, which was the city's prison facility.

"And I'll stay on alert. The last thing we need is something like this sneaking up on us" Kendall replied, now feeling the ache in his leg subsided. Separating himself from Carlos, the Latino turned to face him.

"Thank you for your help today Blizzard. I'm not sure what we would have done if you weren't here" Carlos said, causing Kendall to flash him a small smile as he patted the chief on the shoulder.

"There's no need to mention it. And I'm sure you and your men would have been able to handle it, if I wasn't here. You're all very capable" Kendall replied, causing Carlos to nod before Kendall turned around, ready to make his escape.

However, as the blond began to skate up into the air, a familiar pair of hazel eyes connected with his own, Kendall seeing James stood behind the barrier the police had set up. The brunet was still dressed in the outfit he wore to their date, causing a massive wave of guilt to crash over the blond, knowing how disappointed James was that Kendall hadn't come back to his place. In a moment of empathy, Kendall found himself nodding his head at James, directing the brunet to go around the corner of the block, before skating away.

He only hoped that James got his message.

* * *

James was slightly confused by what had just, and was about to happen. The brunet had heard of the bank incident, and by the time he'd finally gotten there, he was greeted with a guy on a stretcher shouting about how 'life as they knew it was over.' As if that wasn't confusing enough, the brunet then found himself making eye contact with Blizzard, who was just about to skate away, but before he could do that, the superhero seemed to nod his head as if to direct him away from the scene. James was unsure of what to do at first, but he followed what Blizzard had said, now leading him to around the corner, where Blizzard seemed to be perched against a wall.

"I'd hoped you'd gotten my signal" Blizzard said, causing James' eyes to widen massively as he approached the hero.

"You…you wanted to talk to me?" James asked, completely astounded by what was happening.

"Well, I thought you might have some questions about what just happened. It'll look good if Dispatch Weekly has an exclusive interview with Blizzard and who better than James Diamond to give it" Blizzard replied, James completely failing to hide the blush that was forming on his face.

"You've…you've heard of m-m-me?" James asked, causing Blizzard to shrug.

"Of course. I like to know what's being published about me and your stuff caught my eye. Snarky enough for Griffin to love, while discreetly praising what I've been doing, that's difficult to pull off and yet you're doing it perfectly. You intrigue me James Diamond" Blizzard stated, James' blush furthering. "So, fire away with whatever questions you have" he continued, causing James to nod as he pulled his phone out of his pocket.

"So, what can you tell me about what happened in the bank?" James asked, starting his long line of questions.

Blizzard seemed to answer them in as much detail as he could, James making as many notes as he could to try and capture the full story, the whole time, the brunet still not believing what was actually happening to him. The two must have spent about 10 minutes together, before James finally finished up.

"That's it, I'm done" James said, causing Blizzard to let out a little chuckle.

"I'll be keeping an eye out what this article, so you best impress me" Blizzard replied, causing James to blush further.

"I'll try" James replied, looking down as he saved the notes onto his phone "So, I'll see you around?" James asked, but when he looked up, Blizzard was nowhere to be seen, leaving him alone on the street, a massive grin on his face.

The whole thing was still completely unbelievable to James, and the brunet felt the need to tell someone as soon as possible before he forgot it all. Scrolling through his contacts, James found the one person he knew would be just as excited as he was, and luckily on the second ring, the person picked up.

"Hello?" Kendall asked into the phone, causing James to launch into conversation.

"Kendall, you're never going to guess who I just met!" James practically shouted into the phone due to his excitement, causing Kendall to chuckle.

"Who?"

"Blizzard!" James exclaimed, glancing around to see a few people staring at him, causing the brunet to lower his voice. "He gave me an exclusive interview and everything! Said he'd been following my work and that he was loving it. Can you believe that? A superhero loving _my_ work!" James continued to rave, Kendall listening to the whole thing, a smile present on his face.

Little did James know however, that Kendall was watching him talking animatedly into his phone from the rooftop above, a massive smile on his face at the gratifying thing he'd just done.

* * *

 **So there we have it! I have to admit, I had so much fun writing a fight scene, especially because I haven't done one like that since Rekindled! Anyway, so Kendall managed to defeat Pulsewave, albeit with a little bit of difficulty and at the end of the fight, Pulsewave gave out a warning? Do we think this is a genuine thing, or just the raving of a lunatic! Also, I hope you liked the small bit of Kames at the end of the chapter with Kendall speaking to James as Blizzard! It felt like the right thing to do after what happened with the date being cut short!**

 **I want to say a massive thank you to Winterschild11, Guest, RainbowDiamonds and EpicallyObsessed for reviewing the last chapter, and I'm so glad that you all enjoyed it! You seemed to be sad about Kendall's back story, which I've only started to touch upon actually, so expect a lot more development there. And without giving too much away, I do have plans for this story so don't worry! I'm also glad that you liked James' backstory as well, and I have to admit, I had fun writing about that. I felt like I wanted Kames to bond over something, and I felt like a difficult past was something that they could do that over. But like I said, we have a lot more of that to come!**

 **I will see you on Thursday of the next chapter of Rush & Response, and I hope you all have a good week, but until then,**

 **TTFN 😃❄**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hi Guys and Welcome back to Blizzard! I'm so glad that you all enjoyed the last chapter, and let's crack on with this shall we?**

* * *

As Monday dawned over Spirit City, Kendall found himself reviewing what had happened over the weekend, although to be honest, most of it seemed to revolve around the events of Sunday evening. Everything had started off well on a personal front, with Kendall walking into work on Saturday morning to be greeted with his favourite brunet. The two had chatted for a short while, and Kendall even built up the courage to kiss James on the cheek as he left, which was a huge step for him, and that night, James had even invited him on a date. Of course, on the Blizzard front, Kendall also found himself discovering what Pulsewave used and he was able to update his suit in order to help him combat the villain.

The day had been good.

Of course, when Sunday rolled over, Kendall found himself spending most of the day preparing for his date with James, which the blond thought went perfectly. The two of them had easily been able to hold a conversation with each other, and they even shared some of the more personal aspects of their life with each other, Kendall finding that he could do it with ease because of a feeling he got from James. Of course, the evening was cut short with Pulsewave robbing the bank, so while Kendall had to leave early, the evening hadn't been a complete right-off. Kendall had been able to defeat Pulsewave and now the villain was in the SCIP, meaning that it was one less thing for Kendall to worry about. He'd also made James' day when he appeared to the brunet as Blizzard and answered a few questions that James had for him, and from the way James talked about it on the phone, Kendall knew it was massive appreciated.

So, the weekend had actually been really good, so why was Kendall focusing on the negative? After Kendall left James, and they'd find their phone call about Blizzard, Kendall went out on his regular patrol, making sure that the city hadn't been neglected during his fight with Pulsewave. The blond skated through the city with ease, and when nothing of major significance come up, Kendall would have thought that he could have gone home that night with a smile on his face, at ease as he laid in his bed. Instead, Kendall found himself skating round the city multiple times, his mind constantly reeling at this new information he'd received.

 _'There's a rising storm about to hit Spirit City, and there's nothing you can do to stop it!'_

The phrase replayed itself constantly as he skated, and it didn't help that he couldn't shut it off. With nothing going on, Kendall had too much time to think, the blond questioning what Pulsewave had meant by it. What was this rising storm, and was the threat even real? Was there another super villain even worse than Pulsewave waiting to pounce now that he'd gone, or was it just an empty threat meant to psych the blond out, to make him paranoid and constantly on edge. If that was the case, then it was certainly working, but what if it wasn't? Was if it was real? It was that train of thought that kept Kendall up pretty much all on Sunday night, the blond only getting about an hours' worth of sleep when he returned home at 3:00am, and it was the thought that was still on his mind as he walked into Diamond Inc at 9:00am on Monday morning.

* * *

When Kendall walked into the lab on Monday morning, he was completely out of it, his mind still not letting him rest as the constant paranoia of Pulsewave's threat loomed over him, and it was due to this that the blond didn't notice glancing over at him, with a massively shocked look on his face. Getting everything out of his locker that he needed, Kendall turned around to see Logan looking at him that way, causing the blond to raise an eyebrow at him.

"Morning Doc" Kendall said, Logan trying to hide the facial expression, but ultimately failing at it.

"I didn't expect you to be here today" Logan replied, causing Kendall's eyebrows to furrow slightly.

"Why not? I do work here…right?" Kendall question, but when Logan didn't seem to answer right away, Kendall became slightly worried. "Wait, I do still work here right? I haven't been fired and I just don't know about it, have I?"

"What, no of course not" Logan replied, Kendall letting out a breath of relief before continuing.

"So, why are you confused to see me?" He asked, causing Logan to go all sheepish as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"No, it's nothing, don't worry about it" he replied, but Kendall was having none of it.

"No, tell me. Why were you so shocked to see me this morning?" Kendall asked again, Logan's face paling slightly as he spoke.

"Well, it's just that I…um…well, I came into the lab Sunday Morning to get everything ready for today, and I saw that the super computer had been left on" the brunet began, causing Kendall to pale this time.

 _'He knows! He fucking knows!'_ The blond brain supplied, but Kendall didn't say anything, as Logan continued.

"So, when I went over to it, and when I looked at what was still loaded, it was the schematics for some gauntlets"

That definitely wasn't what the blond was expecting, but boy did it seem to flare anger within the blond.

"And you thought that I was what, Pulsewave?" Kendall asked, Logan letting out a meek nod, the brunet knowing that he'd done wrong. Kendall threw his hands into the air over the news, before he found himself leaning on his desk. "Jesus Doc, he seriously didn't think that did you? You can't seriously think that I'm capable of doing the stuff that he did"

"Well, I didn't want to, but when I saw that it was the schematics for the gauntlets as well as simulations on how they work, it was hard not to jump to conclusions. I mean, I was in shock"

"And the logical thing was for you to assume that I was a super-villain?"

"Well, you have mentioned how much you need money"

"So you thought I'd rob a bank just to get it?" Kendall questioned, his voice slightly raised. When Logan didn't say anything, Kendall just shook his head in his hands. "Jesus Logan, I can't believe you"

"I know, and I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend you or anything. I just panicked, and I assumed the worst. I'm sorry Kendall" the brunet replied, causing Kendall to shrug.

"I mean, it's ok…I just didn't think you thought so lowly of me" Kendall replied, causing Logan's face to drop.

"No, no, that's not-"

"We have to get to work" Kendall cut the brunet off, completely hurt by what Logan had said to him already that morning. He certainly hadn't expected his morning to start off in such a way, and what seemed to hurt the blond the most was the fact that the guy he looked up to thought he was capable of the actions that Pulsewave had committed.

And with Kendall knowing what those actions were in some detail, he couldn't help but feel slightly betrayed.

* * *

It was safe to say that the rest of the day was rather awkward, with the two of them not really saying anything for the rest of it. They both seemed to get on with their work, working on their own separate projects and hardly interacting with each other, apart from when Kendall told Logan that he was going for lunch. Still, the blond made no offer to buy him anything like usual, and Kendall even found himself sitting in the cafeteria instead of eating in the lab like he'd usually do.

In Kendall's mind, the work day couldn't end soon enough, so when the clock finally struck five, Kendall found himself packing his stuff away instead of staying a little later like he usually would. Although, it seemed by this point, Logan was going to try and attempt to justify himself again, especially by the way that the brunet stood in front of the door. Kendall let out a sigh as he approached, ready to forget about the day he was having, but that didn't stop Logan from talking.

"Seriously Kendall, I am sorry about what I said. It was wrong of me to assume that you were…Pulsewave, and you should know that I don't think that lowly of you at all Kendall. You're so smart, and such a brilliant scientist and that's one of the reasons I assumed it was you. If anyone could have invented that technology, it would have been you. But, like I said, I really didn't mean any offense or to assume anything. I just panicked when I saw the stuff on the supercomputer and I was so shocked, and I just didn't know what to think. I should have just asked why you were researching that stuff instead of jumping to conclusions and assuming the worst. I'm sorry" Logan finishes, causing Kendall to look down at the floor. Sure, he was still slightly mad at Logan for assuming all that stuff, but by the sounds of it, he didn't mean to do it maliciously. Plus, Kendall knew what Logan was like, especially when he panicked.

"It's ok" Kendall replied, finally looking up at Logan with a small smile on his face. At the end of the day, Kendall could at least go without the awkwardness in the lab, even if he was still silently pissed at Logan. Still, he supposed it was better than Logan knowing his actual secret. "I know you didn't mean anything by it"

"I didn't, and I'm so sorry Kendall. I'll make it up to you, I promise" Logan apologised again, causing Kendall to let out a soft chuckle.

"You can start by buying me lunch tomorrow" The blond replied, causing Logan to nod his head.

"Deal" the brunet replied, a smile growing on his face at the fact that they've returned to civil ground. With the hopes that he wouldn't kill the good mood, Logan continued. "If I can ask though, why were you researching Pulsewave's gauntlets" he asked, causing Kendall to shrug slightly, his usual tactic of using a half-truth coming into play.

"I heard about the attack on the news, and I got a little curious. I mean, the dude was vibrating the air around him, how cool is that? Researching equipment like that is like a scientists dream!" The blond replied, and like usual, he wasn't exactly lying. He was certainly curious about how Pulsewave was doing what he was doing, but it wasn't because he thought it was cool…or it wasn't mainly because of that.

However, Kendall was snapped out of his thought process when he heard Logan let out a little chuckle. "I will admit, I was curious as well. And when I finally got over my shock, I did look over the schematics myself, and they were very impressive" the brunet agreed, a small smile on his face. "Still, I'm just grateful that Blizzard was able to stop him before anyone got majorly hurt or any serious damage was done. That dude is seriously a life saver"

"Yeah, he really is" Kendall replied, trying to fight the smugness away at the fact that Logan had just paid him a compliment without even knowing.

* * *

The rest of the week passed as a bit of a blur for the blond, with all the days seemingly blending into one. After this awkward day on Monday with Logan, Kendall spent the night working at the café, where he had a brief chat to James about the whole situation, and once the café had closed at 11:00pm, the blond spend all night up as Blizzard, keeping a watchful eye over the city in case of any trouble.

Admittedly, the blond found the usual but it was nothing that the police couldn't have handled by themselves, but the threat of a 'rising storm' kept him up and alert. He didn't sleep that night, and instead found himself turning up at Diamond Inc at 9:00am, only to repeat the day over again. He work with Logan till 5:00pm, work at the café from 6:00pm until 11:00pm and then spend all night taking care of the city.

His sleep pattern was completely shredded, and when the blond did attempt to get any sleep, he'd find himself only being able to get about an hours' worth before he was up and alert again, worrying that he'd missed something big. This threat from Pulsewave was seemingly bothering him more than he imagined it would at the time and by the time that Friday hit, it was safe to say that the blond was not in a functioning state.

James especially found that out when he walked into the café on Friday night. The brunet hadn't frequented the location a lot over the past week, with him having to stay late in order to cover Blizzard activities, and while the brunet knew he worked well at the café, he also knew that there was a certain distraction that meant he actually got most of his work done at home once he'd left. This time however, with the increasing pressure he'd gained from publishing the interview as well as the amount of work that was piling up, James knew that he couldn't afford to be distracted.

So, when Friday night hit, and James knew that he could just work on his pieces over the weekend, James decided it was about time that he visited the café, and the blond again, this time with a definite ulterior motive in mind. After how well their first date had gone, James certainly wanted a second one, and tonight was the night he planned to ask Kendall about it.

* * *

So, as James walked through the door and the little bell above it sounded, he couldn't help the smile that grew on his face, excited to see the blond. However, his smile dropped when he couldn't see Kendall anywhere, but deciding not to let that get the better of him, he made his way over to his usual booth. Following his usual routine, James pulled his laptop out of his bag and set it on the table, loading it up as he browsed the menu, 'wondering' what to get. James had been there so many times at this point that he knew exactly what he wanted, and it wasn't on the menu, but he was still a little nervous, so he decided to browse.

"Hey James, you want your usual?" he heard Kendall ask, and he couldn't help the blush that tinted his face as he heard the blond's voice. Taking a deep breath, James looked up at the blond, but he was greeted with the unexpected.

"Oh god. Kendall, are you ok?" James asked, his eyes wide as he took in the sight of the blond. Massive bags hung under his eyes, a clear indicator that Kendall hasn't slept at all, and the way his blond hair stuck up in all directions seemed to suggest the same thing. As well as that, Kendall's stance was completely different to usual, with the blond slumped over himself instead of standing up straight, and his eye lids never seemed too far away from closing.

"I'm fine James" Kendall replied, a little bit snippily, which was another suggestion to James that the blond hadn't slept.

"Really, because it looks like you haven't slept in days."

"That because I haven't" Kendall replied, matter-of-factly, causing James' eyes to widen.

"Why?" James asks simply, causing Kendall to shrug, coming up with yet another half-truth.

"Something came up with work, and I've been working late, that's all. So, what can I get you?"

"That's ridiculous Kendall" James replied, completely disregarding the fact that Kendall had tried to get back to work. Of course, the situation was only worsened by the fact that Kendall looked half asleep as James was talking to him

"Sit down, you should be at home sleeping, and not working"

"I'm fine James"

"No, your not. Sit down" James insisted once again, causing the blond to let out a sigh, knowing that James wasn't going to listen to what he was saying. It's not like James could understand anyway, it wasn't like he had the safety of the city and everyone in it resting on _his_ shoulders. Still, the blond found himself sitting on the seat opposite James and as soon as he hit the cushion, he felt his legs give out, with this being their first chance to rest all day.

"Where are you going?" Kendall asked when he noticed James standing up, the blond's arms already starting to ache from holding the pen and notepad he still had in his hands. Dropping them on the table, Kendall found his head lulling as James replied.

"To speak to the manager. You shouldn't be working like this" James replied, and Kendall couldn't even find the strength to argue with the brunet, his whole body feeling weak. James however, had a renewed strength within him after the state Kendall was in, and he didn't even think twice as he walked through the doors that lead to the back.

As soon as he found the manager, he started to speak, not giving the man the chance to ask what he was doing back there. "I'm taking Kendall home. He's completely exhausted, and he shouldn't be working in that condition"

"Thank god" the man replied, causing James to raise his eyebrow at him. "I tried to get him to go home when he arrived, but he just ignored me and started to work. I didn't want to cause a scene in the café, but I was going to send him home on his break anyway" the man continued, James letting out a small sigh at the fact that the man wasn't a monster. "I'll go get his things, and meet you in the front"

"Thank you" James replied, a small smile on his face, causing the man to nod in return before he disappeared.

As James walked back into the café, the first thing his eyes locked onto being the blond, who was now completely slumped over the table, clearly asleep. James couldn't help but smile at how peaceful Kendall looked as he made his way back, and as quietly as he could James packed his stuff away before slowly shaking the blond.

"Kendall, I'm taking you home ok?" James asked, but the only response he seemed to get from the blond was a grunt, Kendall clearly disorientated as to what was happening. As James lifted Kendall out of his seat, the manager turned up with Kendall's rucksack which the brunet threw over his shoulder as he continued to help Kendall walk.

It was clear the blond was trying to walk himself, but it was also clear that he was exhausted, so James was only going to get the bare minimum from him. Finally, the two of them made it out of the café, and when James was able to hail a cab, he let out a sigh, hoping that Kendall would see that James was only trying to help him when he woke up.

Still, as James laid Kendall down across the back seats, the brunet knew that he was doing the right thing.

* * *

 **So there we have it, a less dramatic chapter than last time, but still pretty important to the story! So, it started with Logan thinking that Kendall was Pulsewave, and I thought that was a unique thing to add, with everyone expecting Logan to find out Kendall's secret! We then had a little bit of insight about Kendall's weekly routine, with the blond being massively paranoid and anxious about what Pulsewave had said meaning that he's stayed up practically all week. Of course, when James saw him like that, he was having none of it, meaning that he's taken Kendall home! The continuation of that will be next chapter!**

 **I want to give a massive thank you to Winterschild11, Guest, RainbowDiamonds and EpicallyObsessed for reviewing the last chapter and I'm so glad you liked it! You all seemed to love that Kendall defeated Pulsewave, as well as his little chat with James, which I'm really glad about, as that was something I was excited to share with you! You also seem curious as to how long its going to take James to realise that Kendall is Blizzard, and don't worry, I have a plan for that as well!**

 **Anyway, I will see you on Thursday for the next chapter of Rush & Response, but until then,**

 **TTFN 😃❄**


	8. Chapter 8

**Hi guys and welcome back to Blizzard! This is a continuation of the last chapter, so let's crack on with it!**

* * *

It was safe to say that getting Kendall up the stairs was a difficulty that James hadn't considered when they left the café, but now as they loomed in front of him, it realised that it was going to be a slightly challenge.

"Here goes nothing" James mumbled to himself as he made sure that his bag and Kendall's bag were resting on his shoulders properly. Without any offence to Kendall, the last thing James needed right now was to break his laptop while trying to carry the blond up the stairs, who was actually considerably heavier than James would have imagined. When James looked at the blond, he was lean and slender, so James wasn't expecting the amount of muscle that Kendall actually had. Now, the brunet himself was also pretty fit, but that didn't seem the make it any easier when James had to carry Kendall up four flights of stairs to reach the blond's apartment.

James panted as soon as he reached the top, placing Kendall on the blond, with the blond being completely asleep by this point and if climbing the stairs proved anything, it was that Kendall was definitely a heavy sleeper.

"Now to find your keys" James spoke to himself, still slightly out of breath. "I really hope you don't mind me doing this. It's for a good cause I swear" James continued to speak as he swung Kendall's bag around on his shoulder before reaching into it.

The brunet tried his best not to look at what the bag contained, knowing that Kendall probably had some personal stuff in there that James didn't need to see, but of course, not looking into the bag made it about ten times harder to find what he was looking for, and it didn't help that Kendall's bag was almost a Tardis in nature, with it being seemingly larger on the inside. James must have rummaged for a good couple of minutes before his fingers finally laid upon a jangling object and with a smile on his face, he found himself pulling out Kendall's apartment keys.

"Now the difficulty of finding what key fits the lock" James mumbled to himself, the blond still snoozing on the floor, almost lifelessly, and when James saw Kendall in this state, he once again knew he was doing the right thing. Luckily for James, Kendall only had a limited amount of keys on his key chain, meaning that it was fairly easy for him to find the right one. Of course, there was the moment when James thought he'd gotten the wrong key stuck in the lock but luckily he was able to yank that one out, with fairly minimal damage to both the lock and the key.

Finally, the door was open and when James lifted Kendall back into his arms, the brunet found himself walking into the apartment before using his foot to close the door behind him. The apartment was exactly the same as when James saw it last, although it looked like the place was hardly lived in over the past week, with there being nothing out on the sides or in the bin.

"Bless you" James said to Kendall in his arms, thinking back to how busy Kendall said he was with his work. He'd definitely need to speak to his father about the work Kendall had been given to do over this week, as it was clearly affecting the blond more than he let out. With the lack of rubbish in the bin, James wouldn't have been surprised if Kendall hadn't eaten a proper meal all week, instead living off of store bought ready meals that he could microwave at work. Shaking his head, James made his way over to Kendall's bed room, trying not to remind himself that he was massively invading the blond's privacy by doing this.

 _'It's for a good cause'_ James told himself as he pushed the bedroom door open to reveal the blond's unmade bed, the duvet sat in a ball on the top of his bed where Kendall had obviously been in such a rush to leave that he hadn't had time to make it. James sighed once again as he finally placed the blond into his bed, and after sorting out the duvet, James laid it over Kendall, finally allowing the blond to rest in a comfortable place.

Of course, James had considered undressing the blond for a brief second before he managed to shoot that idea down into a flaming ball. That would certainly be an invasion of privacy and James knew that he'd already done so many of those this evening. Plus, the last thing he wanted was for Kendall to think he was a creep, so the brunet decided against it, instead shutting the blinds on Kendall's window to make sure the room was dark before quietly shutting the door, a smile on his face that he knew the blond was safe and getting some rest.

"And now what" James said out loud as he stood staring at the front door of Kendall's apartment. As much as he knew he should, James felt awkward just leaving Kendall alone by himself.

What happened if the blond woke up and tried to work again?

Then he'd just in the same position as before. "That settles it then" James said to himself once again as he set Kendall's bag down on the floor. He would stay to keep an eye on Kendall and make sure that the blond was getting the rest he needed. "I just hope you don't hate me after this" James mumbled to himself, before securing his bag on his shoulder. "Well, if I'm gonna stay, I might as well be productive. That way I won't have lost both my job and my…date at the end of the night" James continued to speak out loud, this time as he walked over to the small table that Kendall had.

The object was clear, so James didn't have to worry about moving any of Kendall's stuff out of the way, and after sighing once again, James set up his laptop and loaded up a word document, continuing his work on Blizzard activities over the past week.

* * *

Typing up Blizzard's activities seemed to take James about 3 hours but once he'd finished it, he knew that now he'd now only have to write about what Blizzard did over the weekend. With how active the superhero had been however, James was unsure of how much that would be, but it wouldn't be anything he couldn't handle. Stretching in his seat, realising that he hadn't actually moved at all in those three hours, James heard his stomach rumble causing the brunet to let out a soft sigh. He'd totally forgotten to eat after he saw Kendall in that state at the café, and he was so focused on getting Kendall back to his place and getting his work done that it completely slipped his mind.

His stomach grumbled again, and James knew that he had to do something about that. Before making his way into Kendall's small kitchenette however, the brunet found himself poking his head into Kendall's bedroom to check on the blond, who was still sound asleep in the bed. James couldn't help but smile at the sight in front of him, with Kendall snuggled up in the duvet, which was now right up to his neck, and James noticed how some of his blond hair was splayed over his forehead while the rest of it seemed to be sticking up.

 _'He's so cute'_ James thought to himself as he silently shut the door, in order to not wake Kendall up, although it was very unlikely that that would happen. James was convinced that a train horn could blare through the apartment and Kendall still wouldn't stir, but he wasn't ready to test that theory. Shaking the thought from his head, the brunet made his way over to Kendall's fridge, but before he opened the door, he froze wondering what to do.

Should he be rummaging through Kendall's food supplies or should he just order something?

James shrugged.

Really, it wouldn't make too much of a difference. James could just offer to replace whatever he ate, and it would save him from eating some junk food. It turns out however that James' little moral conundrum didn't really matter as when he opened the fridge, nothing seemed to jump out at him as appealing for dinner. There were some eggs, bacon, sausages as well as some other bits but nothing that James seemed to want.

"Take away it is" James mumbled to himself as he shut the fridge door and made his way back over to the laptop. Now began the difficulty of James choosing what he wanted for a takeaway and that seemed to be more difficult that he'd planned. However, with his stomach putting some pressure on him, James found himself placing an order for some Chinese food, and after finding himself scrolling through his phone to find Kendall's address again, the order was finally placed with the website telling him it would be about 20 minutes.

Slouching back in his seat, James had finally hit his first brick wall with what to do next. His work was completed, and his food was ordered meaning that he now had the rest of the evening to kill in Kendall's apartment.

Glancing around, James decided he might as well move to the sofa with his laptop. That way, he'd be a little more comfortable as he loitered awkwardly, so the brunet picked up his laptop and made his way over to the object with the bright red covering. As soon as he sat down, he felt a spring pop under him before he began to dig into his back, meaning that he had to adjust positions in order to get comfortable. It was clear that the object was ageing, especially with the amount that James had to shuffle in order to get comfortable, but then again, he supposed that was fair for someone who was awkwardly loitering.

Just as he'd gotten comfortable, the doorbell sounded causing James to jump both within his skin and off of the sofa, silently cursing at how loud the bell was.

"Order for James?" The delivery driver asked as James opened the door, causing the brunet to nod as he grabbed the bag of food.

"Thanks" James replied, smiling as he shut the door on him and when he spun back around, another conundrum hit James. Should he eat on Kendall's sofa, or should be sit at the table?

Back at his place, James would just chill on his couch while watching some TV, but he didn't know how Kendall felt about such thing.

Letting out another sigh, James found himself heading back to his original position. He was definitely overthinking his entire thing and it was definitely because he didn't want to ruin what he had with Kendall at the moment. Sure, the two of them had only been on one date, but James felt that it went really well, and as optimistic as it sounded, James saw himself being with Kendall in the future, so he really didn't want to fuck this entire thing up by doing something stupid. Still, maybe if Kendall did get mad at James for doing something stupid like eating on the couch, then they probably wouldn't work out. James shook his head once again.

He definitely didn't need to be thinking like that at the moment. He just needed to be there for Kendall while the blond needed him, and he could deal with everything else at a later date. For the moment, he might as well focus on eating his takeaway while watching some TV on Netflix. At least that way he could pass the evening relatively quickly and that's what James found himself doing for the rest of the night.

He ate his food pretty quickly and after throwing the rubbish into the bin, James made himself comfortable on Kendall's sofa once again, his laptop resting on the coffee table as he laid across the uncomfortable object. The brunet quickly discovered where the springs in the sofa were, and after some shuffling he finally found a position that wasn't terribly uncomfortable for him.

As the evening turned into night, the brunet found it difficult to keep his eyes open, and soon he succumb to the comfort of sleep.

* * *

As Kendall awoke on Saturday morning, he couldn't help the yawn that escaped his mouth as he rolled over, his head hitting another soft object as the blond tried to shield his eyes from the sunlight. That's when the blond shot up from the bed, his back cracking at the speed he'd done so, but that was the last of the blond's concerns as he entered a state of temporary panic as he tried to gain his bearing. He glared at the room he was in, slowly recognising it as his own as his brain started to get into gear and when Kendall looked down, he noticed that he was still dressed in his waiter's uniform.

Pulling on the collar of his shirt, Kendall was relieved to see that his Blizzard outfit was still on under his clothes, but he began to panic again, wondering how he seemed to get home to his bed. The last thing the blond properly remembered was heading out into the café after he'd argued with his boss that he was ok to work. Looking back on it now, he knew he wasn't but that's what happens when you're too busy protecting the city to sleep.

"Shit" Kendall said out loud, suddenly remembering the whole reason he hadn't slept and in a massive rush, Kendall found himself jumping out of bed and running towards his bedroom door. As the blond pushed down onto the handle, he was acutely aware of the noise that was coming from the room, but it wasn't until he opened the door that he finally realised he had no clue who was in his apartment.

As soon as the door was opened, Kendall's head shot over to the small kitchenette, only to find James staring back at him, with a 'deer in the headlights' look. "James?" Kendall asked, raising his eyebrow at the blond. "What are you doing here?"

"I brought you home remember?" James replied, causing Kendall's eyebrow to raise even higher.

"You brought me home?"

"Yeah, after I saw the state of you at the café" James replied, letting out a little chuckle although Kendall was still confused.

"You came into the café?" he asked, James chuckling as he shook his head.

"Boy, you must have been really tired" he joked, before reaching down to the oven in order to pull something out of it. "Here, I made you some breakfast. You must be starving"

"You made me breakfast?" Kendall questioned, James rolling his eyes at this one.

"Well yeah. I felt awkward crashing at your apartment for the night, but I also didn't want to leave you alone" the brunet replied, and as James said that, Kendall remembered the reason he came into the living room in the first place.

"Did anything happen last night?" Kendall asked out of the blue, ignoring James' concern for the moment as he reached for the TV remote and turned the object on.

"Um, I don't think so" James replied, his eyebrows furrowing together as he began to dish up a plate for Kendall and himself, the blond now frantically scrolling through news channels in order to see if anything happened. Instead the blond seemed to be greeted with usual Saturday morning news, and he knew that if something big had happened, it would be all over these channels.

"Are you ok?" James asked as he made his way over to Kendall with two plates in his hands.

"Yeah, I'm fine" Kendall replied, turning off the TV before turning to James. "Just a little curious about what I missed" he continued, as James handed him a plate.

"Well, why don't we eat some breakfast and I'll explain what happened last night" James replied, causing Kendall to smile back at the brunet as he nodded.

"Sounds good" Kendall replied, as he and James took a seat at the small table where James had been working the night before.

As James explained what had happened, with Kendall being snippy to him at the café, as well as falling asleep at the table, the blond couldn't help but feel slightly embarrassed at his actions and as James explained what he was still doing there, saying he wanted to make sure that Kendall was ok, the blond couldn't help the warmth that settled in his chest, a feeling that he was definitely unfamiliar with.

"Well, thanks for looking after me" Kendall replied when James had finished telling the story, causing the brunet to smile back at him.

"No worries. I just hope that I haven't intruded too much" James replied, causing Kendall to let out a chuckle as he shook his head. "Also, if you don't mind me asking, what's come up at work?"

"It's nothing really. Just someone that I needed to get done" Kendall replied, causing James to raise his own eyebrow at him.

"Really? Cause it must be something pretty important if you've stayed up all week to try and get it done"

"Honestly, it's nothing, don't worry about it" Kendall replied once again, this time his tone a little snippy, James immediately picking up on it.

"Oh ok" was all the brunet could think to say, with him clearly pushing some unwanted buttons. Suddenly the jovial atmosphere of the table had turned a little sour, both of them picking up on the tension that now existed. James was the first one to break it as he spoke. "Well, I should probably wash this stuff up, and make a move. I'm sure you don't want me hanging about all day" he joked, as he pushed himself up on the table.

"No, you don't have to do that. I can wash up" Kendall replied, and James picked up on the subtle undertone that was there.

"Alright, well, I hope whatever it is that keeping you up at night gets sorted soon. And just remember that nothing is more important than your own health. It's the same thing that I've been trying to tell my father" James said as he reached for his laptop bag and packed away.

Kendall on the other hand was slightly shocked by what James had said to him, and to be fair, the brunet was right. Kendall was basically doing the same thing James' dad was doing, and the blond knew how he felt about that. "James wait" Kendall said, now pushing himself up from the chair as he watched the brunet make his way over to the door. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be rude" the blond continued, causing James to let out a shrug.

"It's fine." James replied, but Kendall could tell from the sound of his voice that it wasn't. "Just let me know when you've figured out whatever it is that's going on with you, and maybe we can go out again" the brunet continued, before leaving the apartment and leaving Kendall slightly shocked. The warmth that was in the blond's heart earlier was now gone, and replaced with regret over how'd he treated James, and also at what he hadn't told him.

Still, some secrets were worth keeping and while Kendall could appreciate that, James on the other hand was now curious to know what Kendall was hiding from him. It was clear that the blond didn't want to talk about what was affecting him so seriously, so James had to go to his second best source of information, and from the information the brunet had, that was his father, with James having the burning question of what work Kendall had been set.

Little did James know that it had nothing to do work.

* * *

 **So there we have it! James stayed to look after Kendall, and luckily he didn't discover anything, and then when Kendall woke up, all seemed to be going well until James asked what was going on with the blond. Now, there's a slight air of tension, and James is beginning his investigation into what Kendall is hiding! What do you think he will find?**

 **I want to give a massive thanks to Guest, Winterschild11, EpicallyObsessed and RainbowDiamonds for reviewing the last chapter, and I'm so glad you liked it! You all seemed to love that Logan accused Kendall of being Pulsewave and I'm glad you did! It was an interesting twist that I haven't seen done a lot so I thought it would be unique. Also, you all seemed to love the fact that James took Kendall home after the state he was in, and I really hope you've enjoyed this chapter along with it!**

 **I hope you all have a great week, and I will see you on Thursday for the next chapter of Rush & Response! But until then,**

 **TTFN 😃❄**

 **Oh, and I'm glad you liked the snowflake! If you haven't guessed I'm trying to give my stories a unique emoji, and this one fits this story well! And I've only used it on the last couple of chapters 😃**


	9. Chapter 9

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! I hope you all had a great weekend and let's crack on with this shall we?**

* * *

As expected, Kendall was back out patrolling the city on the Saturday night, the blond still concerned about this rising storm that was going to hit Spirit City. Really, if anything, nothing happening last night should have provided the blond with some sort of comfort, showing him that the city was still safe, even when he was out of action, but instead it seemed to put in on edge more. However, it was nearing a week since the threat had been made, and nothing had happened, so why was Kendall so on edge?

The blond set out a sigh.

He finally had to face that this time, he wasn't on edge out this rising storm but instead he was out because of his little row with James. The blond had spent most of the day thinking about it, so this was his way of trying to get it out of his head, not that it was working. As Kendall skated around the city, guilt sat heavy in his heart, with the blond knowing that James was only trying to look out for him and help him. There was certainly no malicious intent there, and if there was, James probably would have done something back at his apartment while the blond was asleep.

Instead, Kendall knew that James did his best to try and make Kendall comfortable, and when Kendall had done a brief check of his apartment when James had left, he noticed that nothing was out of place or missing, so James hadn't rummaged through his belongings or stole anything. Another sigh escaped Kendall's mouth, the blond wondering why he was like this. Checking his apartment was the first thing Kendall had done when James had left, and he hated himself for doing it and for not trusting the brunet.

Still, it just shows that some events in the past still have their claws in Kendall, despite how much Kendall had tried to move on. As the blond planted himself on a rooftop, knowing there was no point skating around the city in such a state, he found himself gazing upon the Morningstar Rise apartments, where James lived. Kendall wondered what the brunet was doing in his apartment at this current moment, and as he imagined some scenarios, he couldn't help the small smile that grew on his face.

"Fuck" Kendall muttered to himself, the realisation setting in that he'd truly fucked up this time. The blond knew that he'd have to apologise to James, and probably have to tell him the truth about why he was so tired. A small shiver settled over the blond as that thought passed through his head, a memory surfacing of how scary telling the truth could be.

* * *

 _As the blond walked 'home' from school that night, Kendall couldn't stop the tears that feel from his eyes as well as the sniffles that left his nose, although those could be put down to the fact that it was a cold night in Ely. The tears however were due to the horrible day that Kendall had faced at school, the cruel words of the bullies still rattling around in his head as he walked. He tried his best to ignore them, tried his best to block out the words that seemed to be haunting him, but it certainly didn't that the words spoken were either true or what the blond believed to be true anyway._

 _This was a confusing time for Kendall, with the blond starting to discover his sexuality as he matured, and what didn't help this process was the fact that the bullies were throwing homophobic slang at him. The blond hadn't come out at all, but it seemed like the bullies could read him like a book, or see how badly he was hurt when the called him a 'faggot' meaning that that became their go to when it came to insulting Kendall. And as if to make it ten times worse, when they weren't calling Kendall a 'fag' they were focusing on the fact that he didn't have any parents, saying that no one loved him, and that no one wanted him. Of course, on a day like today, it seemed that the bullies decided to combine the two insulting topics into one, hence why the blond was in tears as he walked back to the orphanage he was currently living in._

 _Before he walked into the building, the blond found himself wiping his eyes before he walked in, hoping to hide the fact that he was crying. He didn't need anyone questioning him about it, at least not tonight, with the blond finding that he just wanted to curl up into a ball and go to sleep, hoping that the day would end, so he could start a new on afresh. Focusing on the floor as he walked, Kendall found himself making it back to his room with relative ease, no one questioning his silence, mostly because they were too busy focusing on things of their own, and as Kendall planted his bag next to his bed, he let out a sigh at the fact that none of his roommates were currently in the room either._

 _As Kendall leant down to take off his shoes, he'd realised that he'd spoken to soon when the door swung open, and the blond found himself continuing with his current task, not even bothering to look up at who had joined him. He didn't really care, with him just wanting to get into his bed, so he certainly didn't need one of his roommates asking questions. Of course, as Kendall finished untying his shoe laces and sat up straight, he saw how the roommate glanced over at him, and at this point, there was no hiding the red circles that were under his eyes._

 _"Hey, are you ok?" his roommate asked, but Kendall just shrugged as he didn't say anything in response. "Kendall, what's up. I can see you tearing up" his roommate continued, Kendall not even noticing that tears were falling until his roommate had said._

 _"It's nothing, I'm fine Zac" Kendall replied, as he laid down on the bed, facing away from Zac, more tears falling from his eyes._

 _"That's clearly not true, I can see that you're crying Kendall. What's up?" Zac asked again, this time sitting on the end of Kendall's bed, to provide a reassuring presence._

 _"Honestly, it's nothing. Just some issues at school" Kendall replied this time, rolling over so that he could see Zac, tears now falling from his eyes._

 _"A few issues?" Zac asked, raising his eyebrow at the blond, clearly not buying what was being said._

 _"Just a few bullies, it's nothing" Kendall answered, but his emotions seemed to get the better of him as a sob tore through him. "They're just being mean, and I know I shouldn't be getting upset over it, but I can't help it" the blond continued, causing Zac to shake his head as Kendall spoke._

 _"Hey, hey, it's ok to be upset if they're being cruel to you. Do you want me to talk to someone about it?" Zac replied, Kendall instantly shaking his head at that option._

 _"No, that'll only make it worse. Please, don't tell anyone. I'll be fine" Kendall stated, his voice firm yet filled with emotion causing Zac to nod._

 _"Ok, well if you want, I'll leave you alone, and I'll keep the others out as well so you can have some time alone" Zac said, causing Kendall to nod. "Alright, and if you do need to talk, I'm always here for you" Zac continued, Kendall smiling at him before his roommate walked away._

 _A small smile graced Kendall's face, feeling better after sharing his problem, and as the blond laid in bed that night, he found that his sobbing seemed to lessen as the night continued._

 _It was the next day that Kendall's fear of telling the truth seemed to come into fruition and that was as the blond was walking home from school._

 _It was late as Kendall had stayed behind to get some extra work done, and some of the streets on his walk home were poorly lit, meaning that the blond didn't see his bullies hiding in one of the shadows. Out of nowhere, the blond found himself falling to the floor after a fist had struck him round the face, and as Kendall's head made contact with the ground, he saw the three boys stood over him._

 _"You're a prick Knight! I can't believe you fucking told the school on us." The main boy said, before placing a kick into Kendall's stomach. "Now, we're going to teach you a fucking lesson about being a snitch. Snitches get stitches" the boy continued, before placing another kick into Kendall's side as the two other boys now got involved._

 _Kendall tried to struggle and stop them, but it was no use, with one of the boys proceeding to hold him down so that he couldn't fight back. Kicks, punches and even a few scratches were dished out to the blond before the three boys scampered away, leaving the blond severely injured as he laid there in tremendous pain. It must have been about 20 minutes before Kendall finally felt the strength to get up from the floor, pain searing through every ounce of his body as he began to limp home._

 _When he finally got back to his room, Kendall saw how Zac was sat on his own bed, reading a book. The other boy went to smile at Kendall, but after noticing the damage, his face dropped as he rushed over to Kendall to give the injured boy a hand. Still, Kendall had enough strength to push Zac away before planting himself on his bed._

 _"My god, Kendall what happened?" Zac asked, but Kendall ignored the question._

 _"Did you tell anyone about what I told you last night?" Kendall asked, seeing Zac go a little sheepish, as if he'd been caught out._

 _"Well, I may have mentioned it…" was as far as Zac got before Kendall began to shout at him._

 _"I told you not to tell anyone! I told you it would only make it worse and now look what's happened!" Kendall yelled, wincing slightly in pain due to his slight movement._

 _"They did this to you?" Zac asked, but Kendall ignored it._

 _"I can't fucking believe you! I told you not to"_

 _"I was only trying to help" Zac argued back, but Kendall didn't care._

 _"And look what's happened now" Kendall replied, shaking his head before laying down in bed, wincing again in pain, as tears formed in his eyes._

Kendall reached under his mask to wipe the tears from his eyes as he relived one story from his past, but looking back upon it years later, Kendall realised that Zac was only trying to do the right thing, and while Kendall hadn't noticed it at the time, everything had started to get better from that moment on. The bullies were excluded from the school, meaning that they weren't making Kendall's life a living hell during the day, and walking home, it seemed he always had someone with him from that moment onwards.

At the time, Kendall had been so pissed and angry about what Zac had done, that it took him looking back on it now to realise what changed in the few days surrounding it. Kendall let out a sigh. Maybe telling the truth was the right thing to do after all, and maybe his life would improve greatly if he just told James about everything that was going on. Being Blizzard had been a weight on Kendall's shoulders for the past 8 years, with him keeping his secret for that long as well, so maybe it was time that he finally let someone in.

Another sigh escaped Kendall's mouth at what had currently came over him. There was no way that he could tell James his secret, it was something that Kendall knew he had to keep to himself, both to keep him and James safe, but the blond also began to wonder why he held such trust in James. Then again, so far, the brunet had done nothing but tried to help and get to know Kendall, so there was no reason for him not to trust him.

Kendall shook his head.

This whole thing was new to the blond, and he knew that he'd need to spend some time figuring it all out. As Kendall stood up though, one thing was crystal clear to him. He needed to apologise to James for what had happened. The blond was rude to him after all James had done for him, and James certainly didn't deserve that. Taking off skating, Kendall settled on apologising to James on Monday. That way the blond had a little time to think about what he should say, making his apology as genuine as possible.

* * *

It seemed like James wasted no time however, with him marching into his father's office on the Sunday morning, ready to get some answers as to why Kendall had been set so much work. It was clear to him that the blond wasn't going to answer his questions, and James cared about Kendall to much to let him remain in that state. Henry didn't even look up as the elevator binged and the doors opened, but James knew that his father was aware of his presence by the sigh that he let out, something that was a little hurtful, but James tried not to let that get to him. As James reached his father's desk, he loomed over the figure in the seat, another sigh escaping his father's mouth as he put his pen down, before finally looking up at his son.

"Ahh James. I suspect you're here to inform me of another surprise doctors' appointment you've scheduled" Henry said, causing James to roll his eyes at the comment.

"No father I haven't, but I think we both know that that appointment was necessary and needed" James replied, causing his father to let out a scoff.

"I told you James, I'm completely fine" Henry replied, before breaking into a fit of coughs, James letting out a sigh as his father did so, before walking over to the small fridge in the office to grab a bottle of water. When James returned to his desk, his father had stopped coughing, so he grabbed the bottle of water James placed down, and took a big swig of it. "Thank you" Henry said when he'd stopped drinking, James now perching on the end of one of the seats opposite his father's desk.

"See, you're not fine, and if you would have listened to me, we could already know what it I by now" James continued, but he knew his father well enough to know that whatever he was saying wasn't going to get through to him, especially when James had to go behind his back just to get him to see a doctor. Taking a deep breath, James let the matter drop. "But that's not what I'm here to talk to you about today. We can discuss that when the results come back. I'm here because I'm curious about the additional workload that you've placed on the staff on the glaciers project"

"Additional workload?" Henry asked, causing James to nod.

"Yeah, it seems one of your employees has been suffering due to it, so I was wondering what type of work you'd put on them as well as what time frame you asked them to do it in. Just because you don't have a life father, doesn't mean that everyone else doesn't as well. These people need to be able to rest and not feel pressured to get work completed in unrealistic time frames, so much that they don't sleep for a week" James began to rant, this time not noticing the confused look his father had gained.

"Wait, wait, hold on" his father interrupted, James going quiet as he looked over at his father, noticing the confusion for the first time. James' face seemed to waver slightly as he noticed it, and he was suddenly filled with hope that his father knew what James was talking about. "I haven't placed any additional work on the glaciology project, if anything, I've reduced it momentarily" His father replied, James' hope crumbling.

"You've what?" James asked, now matching his father's on confusion. "When the study on the first glacier came out as a success, I decided to spearhead the project, telling the main researcher that he'd have the necessary funds and equipment he needed to replicate the project. As of now, I told him to work with his lab assistant to find another suitable location for the experiment to take place, and since then, I haven't heard anything back, apart from the fact that they are still looking."

"Maybe the selection process is stressing him out" James mumbled, under his breath, causing his father to raise an eyebrow at him. James ignored it as he asked. "How long did you give then to choose a location"

"As long as they needed." Henry replied, James hope crumbling further. "They're the experts in this project, and I didn't what to rush them into choosing a location, especially if the experiment might not work there. Then we would have just wasted money due to a rushed decision" James let out a frustrated sigh, with this lead being a completely dead end.

Scratch that, it wasn't a dead end.

Instead, James found out that Kendall was lying to him, and the brunet couldn't help but feel slightly hurt. Before James could get lost in his head however, his father spoke up again.

"I must ask, why are you so fascinated in a research project here? You've never been curious about one before." Henry asked, causing James to shrug.

"No reason" James replied, and his tone was enough to show that he didn't want to talk about it. So, instead of lingering on the problem, Henry just picked up his pen and continued to work.

"Well then, if you're done interrogating me, I have work I need to get back to"

"Of course you do" James mumbled, rolling his eyes as he push himself up from the seat.

"I'll send you a message when I get my doctor's results back, showing that I'm perfectly healthy" Henry continued, causing James to roll his eyes once again, this time not even bother to engage with his father.

Instead, the brunet was trying to figure out what was so important to Kendall that he'd tell James that his parents were dead, but not this. Whatever the blond was hiding, James knew that it was something big, and the reporter in him really wanted to find it out.

After all, what's a little harmless investigating.

* * *

 **So there we have it! Kendall realised that he was wrong, and we got a small bit of backstory from him as well, and James has discovered that Kendall is lying to him, causing him to become more curious about what Kendall is hiding! I wonder where this is going to go!**

 **I want to give a massive thank you to Guest, Winterschild11, RainbowDiamonds and EpicallyObsessed for reviewing the last chapter, and I'm so glad you liked it...sort of😜 James looking after Kendall was pretty adorable bless him, but Kendall seemed to ruin everything with him getting all defensive. Don't worry, this certainly isn't the end of Kames, and RainbowDiamonds, they will get their night together, although probably not in the way you think! I'm so excited to get this story out to you all every week, as I have so much rattling through my head that I want to show you all! I will admit though, that this is one of those stories where I don't have a plan I follow every week. With Rush and Response, I know what is exactly coming up next in the chapter, whereas with this one, I just write what I'm feeling at the time, so that is something new for me!**

 **Anyway, I'm rambling now, so I'm going to sign off. I hope you all have a good week, and I will see you on Thursday for the next chapter of Rush & Response! Also, if you haven't already, check out chapter 5 of The New Frontier as I finally uploaded that after several months. Anyway, I'll see you on Thursday but until then, **

**TTFN 😃❄**


	10. Chapter 10

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! I don't really have a lot to say here, so let's crack on with it shall we?**

* * *

James sighed as he walked into the Dispatch Weekly building on Monday morning. The whole weekend, he hadn't heard anything from Kendall and after the information that he'd learnt from his father yesterday, he was really hoping that he would. Instead, the radio silence only seemed to make James more curious about what Kendall was hiding from him, hence his plan for today. Over the space of Sunday afternoon, the brunet had managed to get all of his work done, meaning that unless something big happened today, he could pretty much count it as a right off. So instead of working, James planned to use the many resources available to Dispatch Weekly to dig up some information on Kendall.

Another sigh escaped James mouth, this time as he stepped into the lift and pressed the button. It sounded ridiculous, but at this point, James was desperate to know what Kendall was hiding from him. It seemed that whatever the blond was hiding was something really important to him, and while to most that would mean it was something to be left alone, the reporter in James just wouldn't let him do that. Especially after Kendall told him a lie that James could so easily find out the truth about. When the lift doors finally opened, James made his way over to his desk, ready to begin the day of sleuthing that he had in front of him, and as soon as his laptop was set up on his desk, it began.

First, James checked the social media profiles that Kendall had online. These probably wouldn't provide much information, with the blond being a fairly reserved person online from what James could gather, but it might provide him with some places to start, and some leads to follow.

Yep, this was certainly ridiculous.

Still, James didn't let the small amount of guilt deter him from doing the one thing he was pretty good at, and within about 15 minutes of searching, or stalking if we were to use a more appropriate word, James had learnt that Kendall grew up in an orphanage in Ely, which matches with the story that Kendall had told them during the date. As a bit of a side search, James was unable to find any leads on Kendall's potential sister that was out in the world, so he decided to focus back on the blond.

Apart from the orphanage information, James was only able to find that Kendall studied Glaciology at SCU, which was something that he already knew due to the fact that he was working with for his father's company, and that the blond had had a few boyfriends in the past, something that James found by finding pictures of them on his social media pages. James ran his hands through his hair with slight frustration. Nothing out of the ordinary was being found on Kendall, and as James searched for information, he only felt more ridiculous and guiltier for what he was doing. It was only made worse when Camille turned up to work that morning.

"Morning" the brunette girl said as she placed her bag down on her desk.

"Morning" James replied as Camille sat in her chair and swivelled round so that he could see what James was doing. "Stalking the coffee lad huh. I thought you two were a thing" Camille said, causing James to let out a sigh as he swivelled around to face her.

"I don't know what we are anymore. On Friday, he was exhausted, so I took him home so he could get some rest. When he woke up on Saturday, and I asked him why he was so tired, he lied to me about it, so I told him to sort out whatever it was that was making him so tired and then to talk to me" James said, as he ran his hands through his hair once again, and pushed his glasses up from the bridge of his nose.

"Wait, let me get this right. Your semi-boyfriend lied to you about why he's tired, so the first thing you did was research him?"

"Well, technically the first thing I did was spoke to my father to see whether he was lying or not but…yeah"

"Not gonna lie, that's kinda creepy dude" Camille admitted, causing James' face to contort slightly with confusion.

"Well, yeah, when you put it like that it sounds creepy but…"

"Can you put it another way for me then? So it doesn't sound creepy" Camille asked, causing James to stare slightly as he tried to figure out what he could say to make it sound ok which, to be fair to him, was absolutely nothing.

"God you're right" James admitted, his head falling into his hands as he let out a sigh. "It is kinda creepy. It's just that…well, I really like this one, and I suppose I just wanted to know everything about him before I fall in love with him. I mean, I don't want to be in a relationship where he's just gonna lie to me all of the time. And you know what happened in my relationship with Stephen."

"Stephen was an asshole James, and not all guys are going to be like that." Camille replied, placing a hand onto James' shoulder to show some support. "Besides, this thing with Kendall is only just starting so maybe he doesn't feel comfortable telling you everything just yet, but he will eventually, you just need to give him a chance. I mean, you've only been on what, one official date with the guy, how comfortable do you feel telling him everything?"

"I told him about the shelter on our date, so pretty comfortable" James replied, with a sad chuckle causing Camille to pat his shoulder slightly.

"Oh James, you do fall fast and hard. Just give Kendall a chance before you start trying to dig up his entire past. He'll probably tell you all of it eventually, if you give him the chance to."

"Thanks Camille" James replied, finally pulling his head from his hands to flash her a small smile.

"No worries, now I have some work to get done, and I'm sure you do to. If not, there's always some of my stuff you can do as payment for being your counsellor" she joked, causing James to let out a chuckle.

"I think I'll pass" James replied, causing Camille to tut and roll her eyes playfully before swivelling back around to her desk.

With a small smile on his face, and his head out of the weird place he was in, James found himself doing the same, swivelling round to his desk and closing the tabs loaded on his computer as he did so, making sure that he could focus on something else.

* * *

As the day came to an end, with James having done very little work considering Blizzard hadn't done anything during the day, the brunet found himself packing up at about 5pm, ready to head home for the evening and do…something. James didn't really have any plans, well apart from to watch some TV and attempt to cook himself some food, but maybe that's just what the brunet needed. With him freaking out about Kendall lying to him all weekend, James' brain hadn't properly stopped but now that he'd gotten some sound advice from Camille, he felt like he could let it go, and chill out for once. No pressure to get anything finished, or for him to worry about anything.

These evenings were a rare occurrence for James, and one that he was going to take advantage of. His walk from the lift to the front doors consisted of him trying to think about what stuff he had stored at home, and whether he could make something out of it, and as he pushed the Dispatch Weekly doors opened, James was startled out of his thought process when his phone began to ring. As soon as the brunet was outside, he pulled the device from his pocket to see that Kendall's name was flashing on the screen, so after taking a deep breath, James finally answered.

"Hello?" James asked, adjusting the laptop bag on his shoulder so that it was sitting comfortably as he walked.

"Hey, it's Kendall. I just wanted to ring, and umm…apologise for what I said to you on Saturday" Kendall began, and James could hear from the tone of the blond's voice that he was slightly nervous. "It was completely unjustified, and I know that you were only trying to help, and I didn't even thank you for that, I just got all defensive about it, so umm…I guess thank you for looking after me on Friday night and I'm sorry I snapped at you on Saturday morning" Kendall continued, causing James to let out a slight chuckle.

"Kendall, it's fine honestly. Besides, you don't owe me anything" James replied, knowing that he was downplaying it slightly. Really, he was just hoping that Kendall would catch on.

"But I do though. Not many people would have told my boss that I need to go home, taken me home and then made sure I was ok" Kendall said, a small grin growing on James face. "So, thank you and I'm sorry…again" Kendall finished, causing James to let out a small chuckle.

"I accept your apology Kendall, and I'm sorry for pushing you too much. It was obvious that you didn't want to talk about whatever it was, and I'm sorry I kept pushing it"

"No, no, it's my fault. I'm just not used to people caring about my feeling and welfare, so I immediately got defensive about it. It's just…" Kendall paused to let out a small sigh. "Maybe we could meet up, so I can explain why I did? I feel like I at least owe you that much after everything you've done for me"

"You don't need to explain yourself Kendall" James began, briefly pausing so that he could look for any incoming traffic before he crossed the street. "But if you want, I was going to have a chill night tonight, watching some TV and relaxing. Maybe you could join me? It might be a great way for you to get your mind off things. I'll cook some food, and we can just talk?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'd like that, it sounds nice" Kendall replied, causing a small blush to form on James' face.

"Ok, what time works best for you?"

"I can come round at seven? I'm not working at the café tonight, my boss has given me a couple days off" Kendall replied, causing James to nod.

"Seven sounds great. I'll text you my address and…um…I guess I'll see you later then"

"Yeah, see you later James. Bye"

"Oh um, bye" James replied, before the phone cut off in his ear. With a smile on his face, as well as a mad blush, James found himself picking up the pace, knowing that he now had to clean his apartment as well.

 _'Why do I get myself into these situations?'_ The brunet questioned, but as soon as he imagined Kendall smiling back at him, with those vibrant green eyes, James knew it was worth it.

Meanwhile Kendall was currently stood over his work computer, with a small grin on his face over the fact that he'd made up with James, the guilty feeling that had sat in his gut over the weekend slightly subsiding. _'Now, just don't be a dick, and you'll be fine'_ Kendall told himself, the blond rolling his eyes at his own mind.

"Someone looks happy" Logan said, causing Kendall to jump slightly at the sudden emergence of the voice.

"Doc, I thought you'd gone" the blond said, causing Logan to let out a small chuckle.

"I had, but I left my ID card on my lab coat, so I had to come back for it. Just in time to hear you making plans with someone" Logan teased, causing Kendall to blush slightly.

"Yeah, it's nothing really, it's just…um…a dinner date" Kendall replied, causing Logan to let out a little chuckle.

"Well, from the way you're blushing, I can tell that it's definitely something. Whoever they are, they must be pretty special to you"

"Yeah, he is" Kendall replied, causing Logan to flash him one last smile before turning around.

"Make sure the lights are off when you leave" were the Doctor's final words, causing Kendall to roll his eyes as Logan left.

Still, even that couldn't wipe the smile off of Kendall's face.

* * *

James was trying to balance about 3 different things by the time it hit 6:50. The brunet was trying to make sure that the stir fry he was making was cooking ok and wasn't burning when he wasn't paying attention to it. He was also trying to set the table, making sure that it had everything that a set table would have, although James wasn't entirely sure what that was. The brunet would normally eat off of a tray on the sofa in his pyjamas, but he didn't think that would cut it for tonight.

As well as those two things, James also hadn't properly chosen an outfit yet, with the brunet rushing about with a pair of jeans and a white top on. He was trying to figure out whether he should have something over it but he couldn't make up his mind whether he liked everything he tried on or not.

Oh, and on top of that, he was also trying to figure out what drinks he had and should put out.

Would Kendall want an alcoholic drink, or would he want something else? Also, the bigger question with all of this, would he like James' apartment? The brunet had spent most of the evening tiding up and cleaning in order to make sure that everything was in a presentable condition. He didn't need Kendall thinking he was a slob after all.

James let out a sigh.

With the 5 things going around his head, he was finding it hard to stay calm, and the one thing he knew he needed to do was stay calm.

The last thing he wanted was to be a massive mess when Kendall turned up, that wouldn't be a good start to their second date.

* * *

Meanwhile, Kendall was just staring up at the Morningstar Rise Apartment building in complete awe. The blond had seen the buildings as a part of the skyline while he's been skating about the city, but when he was stood at the foot of one of them, that's when he actually began to appreciate the size and scale of the building. The tower seemed to go on forever as Kendall stared up at it briefly, trying to figure out if the tower reached above the clouds or whether the night sky from stopping him from seeing the top. As Kendall looked down at his phone, he realised that he'd finally get the answer to that question, with James living in one of the penthouses on the top floor.

Really, Kendall should have seen this coming, with James' father being Mr Diamond. The Morningstar Rise building was only a few years old, and most of the apartments weren't even rented out due to how pricey they were, so it would stand to reason that James lived in the most expensive of them all.

 _'Stop being so judgy'_ Kendall thought to himself, knowing that this was the wrong attitude to have. He knew James, and that the brunet wasn't one to flash his money around, like the stereotypical billionaires, so the blond knew that he shouldn't be judgemental.

Checking the time, Kendall saw that it was about five too, so he began to make it way into the building, where he gazed in awe a little more. The lobby of the building was beautifully decorated with a very modern aesthetic. Red, black and white seemed to be the primary colours used, all three colours working with each other perfectly. There was a small seating area inside, as well as a few plants to make the place feel alive. All the letterboxes were set on one wall, allowing the residents to get smaller mail and packages for themselves, but Kendall guessed the bigger stuff would be handed to reception, hence why there seemed to be a rather…entitled receptionist staring at him as he slowly walked though the lobby.

The woman looked about 10 seconds away from questioning what he was doing here, so the blond found himself saying "I'm here to visit James Diamond, in…um…room 55A" causing the woman to nod slightly, Kendall now feeling massively insecure for some reason. In a quick scuttle, Kendall found himself stepping into the lift, and pressing the button to the 55th floor, ready to begin his journey into the sky.

Luckily for Kendall, he didn't have a fear of heights, mostly due to his activities of Blizzard, so the transparent lift shaft didn't faze him but he could imagine it would to some people. As the lift clicked into place on the top floor of the building, Kendall couldn't help but gasp at the view he had. The city had always been beautiful from his high up, and the Morningstar Rise building seemed to capture that perfectly, with Kendall having a great view of the city centre, where the Diamond Inc building stood tall, higher than this one, as well as the water front in the distance behind that.

With a smile on his face, Kendall snapped a picture of the view, now finally having a legit reason for him to be this high up with his phone, before he finally stepped out of the lift and made his way to James' apartment. With James being apartment A, it was fairly easy to find as it was pretty much the first door that he came across.

Taking a deep breathe, and checking the time to make sure he wasn't super early, he knocked on the door, excited for his evening to begin.

* * *

When James heard the knock on his door, he had a quick moment of panic before he realised that he should probably open it. Wiping his hands on a tea towel, James made sure his appearance was to an acceptable standard before he finally opened the door, revealing Kendall with a small smile on his face.

"Hey, come in" James said, standing out of the way so that Kendall could get into the room.

"Hey, it smells amazing in here!" Kendall replied, causing a faint blush to grow on James' face.

"Thanks. I've made us a stir fry, I hope that's ok"

"Sounds perfect" Kendall replied, following James as the brunet made his way back to the kitchen.

Much like the rest of the building, James' apartment followed the black, white and red colour pattern, with the floors being a nice wood tiling, apart from the living room area, which seemed to have a black carpet. All of James' furniture seemed to make perfectly with the aesthetic, and as Kendall made his way to the kitchen, he noticed it was the epitome of modern, with the cabinets being a glossy black while the work surfaces were a bright white.

"This place is really nice. It's so modern" Kendall said, leaning against a work surface out of James' way, watching as the brunet stood over the hob stirring the stir fry.

"Thanks, I know it sounds pretentious as fuck, but my dad bought it for me as a 21st birthday present, so I've lived here for 3 years now. I tried to do my best with the decorating"

"Well, you've done a good job" Kendall replied, causing James to flash him a small smile as he placed the wooden spoon on the side before spinning around to face the blond.

"Right, that's almost done, should be about another 5 minutes. Can I get you a drink while you wait? I've got Pepsi, wine, some beer, whatever you want"

"A beer sounds good." Kendall replied, causing James to reach into his fridge and grab a drink. With the cap popped, Kendall took a swig, James watching as Kendall's Adam's apple bobbed as he drunk. The two of them stood in silence as Kendall drunk, the whir of the extractor fan the only sound filling the room, and once Kendall has finished, he let out a soft sigh. "I should probably start telling my story huh?" he asked, causing James to shrug.

"Only if you want to" James replied, causing Kendall to flash him a small smile as he nodded. "Come on, let's sit on the sofa. That way, we'll be comfortable" James continued, reaching for the glass of wine he'd been nursing all evening before leading Kendall over to the living room.

With the two of them settling on the sofa, rather close to each other, Kendall took a deep breath, ready to begin his story.

* * *

 **So, there we have it! Kames have finally made up and are on their official second date finally! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and you'll get the next half of the date in the next chapter!**

 **A massive thank you to Guest, Winterschild11 and RainbowDiamonds for reviewing the last chapter, and I'm so glad that you enjoyed it! You all seemed to love Kendall's back story, so don't worry there is more of that coming, with him telling James about his time in the orphanage, and you all seemed curious as to what James would find. In this chapter, I purposefully left it so James didn't find too much on Kendall before Camille convinced him to stop. That way we can get a few more cute Kames scenes out of them!**

 **Anyway, I will see you all on Thursday for the next chapter of Rush & Response, but until then,**

 **TTFN 😃❄**


	11. Chapter 11

**Hey Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! I'm so sorry for the late upload today, but I've had a hectic couple of days! Just a word of warning now, I'll try to make sure that you guys get the chapters, but they might be a little late. Anyway, let's crack on with this shall we?**

* * *

"I suppose you wouldn't be surprised if I told you that I grew up in an orphanage" Kendall began, causing James to choke on the wine he was drinking, thinking that he'd been discovered for researching Kendall. "Since I've already told you that my parents are dead" Kendall continued, causing James to take a deep breath as he got his breathing back under control.

"Right, you said that your mum died during child birth with your sister and your dad died when you were 4" James replied, causing Kendall to nod as he cast his eyes down to the floor.

"So, I was pretty much raised in this orphanage in Ely, and if I'm being perfectly honest with you, I had a pretty rough upbringing. The woman in charge of the orphanage, Miss Blanchard, wasn't very nice. I think she just saw us as walking cash signs, and all she really cared about was the money. She kept us fed and warm, most of the time, but she wasn't really bothered about us. You couldn't go to her if you had a problem, as she'd just tell you to sort it out yourself. It wasn't the best environment for a child to grow up in, especially at a really young age, but I didn't have anywhere else to go. Both sets of my grandparents were dead, and it seemed no one wanted to adopt a 4 year old boy who was crying all the time because his mum was dead. When I started to go to school, I was bullied by a lot of the kids because of the way I dressed and looked. My hair was pretty long and messy since we only got out hairs cut maybe twice or three times a year, and my clothes were all hand me downs from some of the older kids that couldn't fit into them anymore. I learnt very quickly that life wasn't easy, and that if I was going to get through it, I was going to have a thick skin. I didn't have many friends growing up, and it only seemed to get worse when I entered secondary school" Kendall took a break to take a sip of his drink, his eyes still cast down at the floor.

Feeling sorry for the blond, James reached out and placed a hand on Kendall's shoulder, causing the blond to tense up slightly before he relaxed again. "You don't have to continue if you don't want to" the brunet said, causing Kendall to look over at him with a small smile on his face.

"Thanks, but I think it's about time I finally told someone" Kendall replied, causing James to nod as the blond continued. "During secondary school, I was starting to think that I was gay, and it seemed like the kids that were bullying me knew that as well. They would throw homophobic slang at me, as well as remind me of the fact that I was an outcast, while telling the whole class. I confided once in one of the boys that I shared a room with about it, but he broke my trust and told someone about what was going on with me. The bullying only got worse from then on, with the kids actually hurting me as well as just insulting me, and from that moment on, it's been difficult for me to trust people when they're being nice towards me. It's so bad, but I always think that somehow I'm going to get hurt in the end. It's why I snapped at you the other day. With everything that's gone on, I find it difficult when people are just trying to look out for me, because all of my experiences are telling me that something bad is going to happen after it. And I know that you were only trying to make sure that I was ok, and that I was getting enough sleep and all that, but the more you pushed, the more the bad memories seemed to surface, so I'm sorry for that"

"No, I'm sorry, I didn't realise" James said, squeezing Kendall's shoulder to show his support. "But I can promise you that I will try to never hurt you Kendall, and that if I do, it's completely unintentional. You're right, I was being a little pushy the other day, and I should have recognised that and stopped rather than continuing to push."

"It's not your fault James. You're not the one that's got all these issues" Kendall let out a sad chuckle before taking another sip of his drink. "But I'm trying to work through them, cause…I really…um…I care you James, and I don't want to ruin this" Kendall admitted, a small blush growing on his face as he spoke.

"I care you too" James replied, Kendall's head turning slightly as he said it.

The two of them gazed into each other's eyes for a short moment, both seeing the care and vulnerability that was present within them and James was the first one to make a move, slowly leaning in towards Kendall. The blond was quick to copy and before long, their lips locked as the two of them relaxed into each other. In that moment, all was forgotten, it was simply the two of them trying to express their care for each other. Neither of them wanted to moment to end, especially when James started to push a little further, running his tongue across Kendall's bottom lip. The blond moaned at the action, and James took full advantage of it, deepening the already all consuming kiss.

By this point, James was laying back on the sofa, with Kendall straddling slightly. The brunet's hands were holding onto Kendall's sides, almost as if to keep the blond in place for as long as possible, while Kendall was cupping James face, the brunet noting how the blond's cold hands were stopping his face was heating up massively. The two men seemed to compliment each other perfectly, and as said before, all was forgotten in that moment. Kendall was the first to pull away, his lips slightly swollen and his face overcome with blush, but with James' hands on his sides, the blond knew that he couldn't get very, although it wasn't like he wanted to. James was in a similar state, his lips swollen but that didn't stop the massive smile that was present on his face at this moment. Leaning up once again, James placed a small peck onto Kendall's lips before the blond followed him back down, resting his forehead on James'.

"Hey" the blond said, causing James to let out a little chuckle.

"Hey" the brunet replied, lifting his hand so that he could move a stray strand of hair from Kendall's face.

"I hate to ruin the moment and all that, but I think the food is burning" the blond added, before taking a quick sniff of the air. It was filled with a mixture of his and James' cologne, but the blond could definitely detect a faint burning smell. James' eyebrows furrowed at Kendall's words before taking a sniff himself.

"Fuck" James mumbled under his breath, causing Kendall to chuckle as he placed one last kiss onto James' lips before he finally climbed off the brunet, allowing James to rush into the kitchen.

Even while James worked to salvage the burning food, Kendall still notice how he'd look back, giving Kendall a shy glance every now and again. The night was going better that expected and Kendall really hoped that nothing would happen to fuck it up, both in the apartment and outside of it.

* * *

"I'm sorry if it's a little bit burnt" James said as he placed a plate down in front of Kendall, the blond shrugging slightly at James' words.

"It's fine. I mean, it was kinda my fault. I did distract the chef after all" Kendall replied, causing James to let out a little chuckle as he leant down and kissed Kendall on the cheek.

"Still, I think something good came out of it" the brunet began, causing Kendall to blush ever so slightly at James words. "Want another drink while I'm up"

"Just the same please" Kendall replied, causing James to nod as he walked over to the fridge. While James did that, the blond found himself checking his phone quickly, to see if anything was being reported on the news. The blond hated that he had to do this and that he couldn't let himself just enjoy the evening, but Pulsewave's threat still hadn't come to fruition so he was still on edge. Still, maybe this was a sign that the villain was just crazy, and making stuff up to freak him out.

"Here you are" James said as he placed the bottle down in front of Kendall, causing the blond to jump slightly as he pocketed his phone. When James took his seat opposite Kendall, the blond finally dug into the food and he couldn't help the small moan that escaped his mouth when he did. "Good?" James asked with his eyebrow raised, causing Kendall to blush slightly.

"So good. It feels like it's been ages since I've had a proper cooked meal" the blond replied, causing a small smirk to grow on James' face.

"Well, I'm glad I could be the one to provide you with one" he joked, causing Kendall to let out a little chuckle before he took another bite.

Once that was swallowed, Kendall finally started conversation back up again. "So, how was work?" he asked, causing James to shrug slightly as he finished the bite he had in mouth.

"Yeah, it was alright. I got a lot of the stuff done over the weekend, so today I was just reporting on the smaller thing that Blizzard was doing"

"And you're still on the search to find out who he is?"

"Yeah, although I have to admit, that isn't going very well" James joked, Kendall chuckling along with him while trying to prevent a small smile on his face. "My boss isn't too happy about it but there not a whole lot I can do so" James shrugged, taking a sip of his drink.

"I suppose Blizzard must be good at hiding his identity if he's been doing it for this long. He must know a trick or two about it" Kendall added, causing James to nod, not knowing that he was actually praising Kendall.

"He's certainly good, that for sure. I mean, I spoke to the guy and I'm still no closer to figuring it out. Maybe I'm just attempting the impossible"

"I say keep going at it. You never know, one day you might get lucky" Kendall concluded, chuckling at the slight innuendo he made while James just nodded.

"What about you, how was your work? On the glacier project right?" the brunet asked, curious to see how Kendall would reply. James knew what Kendall was currently doing with his work after talking to his father, so in essence this was a small test.

"It's alright" Kendall sighed before taking a sip of his drink. "Dr Mitchell and I are looking at choosing a new test site to see if our previous results were a one off or can be replicated so it's a little stressful. I mean, we need to choose a location that's similar enough to our first location, so if it works we know why but also different enough so that if it doesn't, we know exactly what caused it. It's been a lot of reviewing maps and satellite data, but I think in the end it will be worth it. It's why I was so stressed" the blond continued, causing James to nod along, a small smile on his face now that his curiosity and anxiety had been put to rest.

"I can imagine it's difficult. Although, I am curious, what got you so fascinated with glaciers in the first place?"

"It's not a fascination with glaciers, but more so with ice" Kendall corrected, causing James to raise an eyebrow at him.

"Ice?" James replied, causing Kendall to nod.

"Yeah, it's just so…intriguing. I mean, did you know that there's something called warm ice and cold ice, and depending on the temperature, it reacts in different ways. As well as that, a massive sheet of ice won't behave like you'd expect. It bends like a sheet of plastic rather than just snapping immediately because the hydrogen bonds in its crystal structure break and reform in response to the force. Ice can be manipulated and deformed in some many different ways but a lot of the time, it's strong enough to withstand it. Isn't that just amazing?" Kendall asked, causing James to nod as he took a sip of his wine. "Sorry, I get kind of passionate about it"

"No, it's fine. It was nice to see you get so excited about it" James replied, causing Kendall to blush slightly.

"Anyway, it was during secondary school that I became fascinated by it, so I started to research it a little bit more. When I moved here to come to SCU, Glaciology was the obvious choice for me to make because of my fascination with it, and from there, my interest just grew. When I heard Diamond Inc was looking for an intern on the glaciers project, I jumped at the chance and here I am"

 _'There's also the part that you managed to get ice infused into your bloodstream'_ Kendall's brain supplied, causing the blond to shake his head slightly removing the thought from his brain.

James didn't need to know that part, especially with him being on the manhunt for Blizzard.

* * *

The rest of their meal was filled with more idol conversation and once they'd both finished, James found himself offering to put on a movie, in the hopes that he could keep this night going for as long as possible. When Kendall agreed, James couldn't help the smile that grew on his face, and after the brunet had shoved all of the dirty dishes into the dishwasher while Kendall excused himself to the toilet, he found himself sitting on the sofa, wine in hand, as he scrolled through the movie choices that Netflix. When James heard footsteps approaching from behind, he glanced over his shoulder with a small grin on his face.

"Any preferences?" James asked, his eyes trained on the blond as Kendall grabbed his beer from the table before taking a sip of it.

"Nothing to cheesy" the blond said as he made his way over to the sofa. "And nothing to scary either. I need to be up early in the morning, and I don't need to be freaking out about some ghost coming to get me in my sleep" he continued, now settling down on the sofa as he took another sip of his drink before placing it on the table.

"What about this one?" James asked, hovering over 'Sudden Vengeance.' The film could easily be described as 'Generic action film number 952' but it would work for the evening.

"Looks good" Kendall replied, causing James to nod as he pressed play. Taking one last sip of his wine, James placed the remote and his glass onto the table before he settled in comfortably on his sofa. Taking advantage of that, Kendall found himself shuffling a little closer to James, before the brunet finally wrapped his arms around the blond, pulling him close so that they could cuddle slightly. "You know, this is so much comfier than my sofa" Kendall commented, causing James to let out a hearty chuckle.

"Oh, trust me, I know. Yours seems to have springs jutting up in every direction."

"I guess that's what happens when you buy a cheap ass second hand sofa" That caused the two of them to let out another little chuckle as Kendall snuggled in a little closer to James, a small smile on both their faces.

It was safe to say that they could both get used to this.

It wasn't until about half way through the film that the two of them finally moved, and that was due to a surprise explosion that seemed to come from nowhere. The two of them both jumped at the loud noise, before letting out a little chuckle as Kendall reached for his bottle of beer.

"I wasn't expecting that" James said as the blond took a swig from his bottle and as he leant forward to place it back onto the table, he notice something from the corner of his eye.

"Um James…I don't think that was from the film" Kendall stated as he reached for the remote and paused the film, the two of them now being subject to the noise of sirens blaring throughout the city as they both turned to look out of the windows.

"Oh god" James said, the two of them staring at the giant plume of smoke that was rising from the water front. The brunet was quick to reach for the remote after that, switching the TV back to the regular channels before finding one on the news.

"Reports just in, the Diamond Inc Waterside Research Lab as just suffered from a massive explosion" The newscaster voice spoke over live footage being captured by a helicopter. "The cause of the explosion is unknown, as well as how many people were in the building at the time. We will keep you informed on the situation as more information becomes available" The newscaster finished, their voice fading away while the footage from the helicopter remained on the screen.

"I have to get down there" James said, pushing himself up from the sofa in a mad panic. "I need to make sure that everyone's ok, especially with this being one of my father's labs. I mean, who knows what kind of crazy stuff he's got people testing." James continued, Kendall just nodding. "I'm so sorry to cut our date short."

"No, I understand, I'd do the same thing if I were in your position" Kendall replied, the blond knowing that he needed to get down there as well.

"Thank you for being so understanding" James said, giving the blond a small, sad smile, kissing him on the lips before making his way over to his shoe rack.

"Don't worry about it. Plus, it's getting late, so I should probably head home anyway" Kendall replied, following James to grab his shoes, the blond knowing he had no intention of making his way home.

It wasn't long before the two of them were on street level, James planting one last kiss onto Kendall's lips.

"I'm sorry for cutting our date short, and I promise, I'll make it up to you"

"Hey, it's ok James. Honestly, I understand" Kendall replied, taking a hold of James' hand and giving it a squeeze. "And I promise you, everything will be fine. I'm sure the fire brigade are already tackling the fire and getting out as many people as they can."

That caused a small smile to grow on James' face as he reached down and placed one last kiss on Kendall's lips. "I'll text you later ok?"

"Ok, and stay safe" Kendall said, causing James to nod as Kendall finally let go of his hand.

With James sprinting off into the distance, Kendall slowly began to make his way down the street, and as soon as he was sure that James couldn't see him anymore, the blond found himself slipping into an alley way.

While Kendall's night was over, it was clear that Blizzard's was only just beginning, with him making his way over to tackle this fire.

* * *

 **So there we have it! Another Kames date cut short by something going on within the city! I know, I torture them, and I've also noticed that I'm pretty mean to Kendall in these stories with him always having a difficult backstory. Maybe the next story I write, I'll be a little nicer to him!  
**

 **Anyway, I'm rambling now, so I'd like to give a massive thank you to Guest, RainbowDiamonds, Winterschild11 and EpicallyObsessed for reviewing the last chapter! You all seemed curious to Kendall's backstory so I hope you all enjoyed it and Kames are also finally getting somewhere as well, with the two of them making up, and making out! Of course, there is more to Kendall's backstory than what's been told here, with how he became Blizzard and that will come eventually don't worry!**

 **I hope you all enjoyed, and like I said earlier, hopefully I'll see you all on Thursday for Rush and Response! I promise I'll try to get the chapter written for then, but don't be surprised if it comes on Friday instead! Anyway, I hope you all have a good week, and I will see you soon! But until then,**

 **TTFN 😃❄**


	12. Chapter 12

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! Woo! I'm super excited to get this chapter to you, so let's crack on shall we?**

* * *

When Kendall finally made it to the waterside lab, the blond noticed how the place was still ablaze. While the fire service had done a good job at extinguishing the majority of the fire on the outside of the building, it seems they were struggling with the inside of the lab, meaning that the blond's objective was completely clear. Skating down next to the fire marshal, Kendall noticed how panicked everyone was, which never bode well.

"What's the sitch marshal?" Kendall asked once the marshal had stopped giving orders.

The man sighed before he replied. "It's not looking good. As you can probably tell, we're struggling to put out the fires in the building itself, as its old design didn't allow for a lot of windows. We're doing the best where we can, but we don't have a lot of opinions"

"And do we know how many people are inside?"

"We're not sure. The scientist who was out first provided us access to the registry server, but we don't know how many people have actually gotten out of the building as they may have left from different exits. All I can say is, keep an eye out for anyone, and clear a path for them to get out."

"On it marshal" Kendall nodded, causing the marshal to flash him a small sad smile before he walked away, continuing to give orders. Taking a deep breath while he pulled his mask up over his mouth, the blond headed directly into the building. Kendall had dealt with a fair few fires before, so the blond knew the routine. The lab itself was based in one of the old warehouses that littered the waterfront of the city, except this one had clearly been renovated for a more modern, laboratory feel with the white walls, and flooring as well as the large lights that once illuminated the large open floor plan, which was split into two floors.

Now, however, some of those lights were hanging from the ceiling, and the once white walls were slightly charred by the fire, the only thing that was illuminating the room. Kendall knew he had to act fast, so the blond jumped into action, as he began to spray the ice throughout the building, making sure to extinguish the fires, but also to ensure that the place was structurally sound.

Pieces of the building were already falling apart, so Kendall wanted to make sure that no more of that occurred. While Kendall progressed, he tried his best to keep an ear out for anything resembling someone trapped, but it was rather difficult when the space around him was filled with the sound of fire roaring as well as some parts of the structure cracking due to the structural damage the fire had caused.

However, he was able to pick out the faint sound of sobbing, so the blond followed the noise to a small office that had been closed off due to rubble collapsing in front of the door. Taking a deep breath, Kendall lifted the rubble and threw it elsewhere before barging the door in, causing the person who was sobbing to look up at him with hope all across her face.

"Oh thank god" the woman said, pushing herself up from the floor as she ran to give Kendall a hug. "I thought I was going to die in here"

"It's ok, I got you" Kendall replied, patting her on the back slightly before she finally pulled away.

"We need to get out of here quickly."

"You go ahead, there's still some people trapped in the building. I've cleared a path for you to follow"

"Ok, but just…hurry!" she replied, causing Kendall to nod before she sprinted out of the room, leaving Kendall slightly confused. The blond knew that there was a time constraint on this, but she made it sound like Kendall had less time that he originally thought.

Heeding the warning, the blond picked up the pace as he continued to put out the fires as well as propping up the building. Kendall also noticed how a few of the firemen from outside were now starting to filter in, tackling some of the smaller fires that the blond had missed. Not letting that distract him, Kendall continued his way to the back of the building, rescuing as many people as he could as well as putting out as many fires as he could, but the real issue came when he finally reached the stairwell at the back of the building.

As the blond opened the door, a large plume of what the blond thought was smoke at first was blown directly into his face, causing him to cough at the dust. When it had finally cleared however, Kendall noticed how it was the staircase itself that had collapsed, causing him to let out a little sigh. There wasn't any time for Kendall to get back to the front of the building and take the stairs there as the fire on the upper floor was already intensifying massively, leaving Kendall with only one option.

Taking a deep breath, the blond found himself barging through the rubble that was blocking the door, which actually caused the building to jolt ever so slightly as well, with more, smaller chunks of rubble dropping as he did so. Another deep breath, and Kendall barged the rubble again, causing it to collapse a little bit more, allowing him access to the space that the collapsed staircase once filled.

It was fairly easy for the blond to create a little ramp up to the second floor, and after climbing it, the blond opened the door, only for ash to blow directly into his face. The first floor was seemingly nothing compared to the devastation that was going on up here. Still, the blond didn't let that deter him as he began his process of putting out the fires and securing the building. Anyone he rescued on his way was told to stay close to him, since there was no way they could get back down to the first floor without is help, something he didn't have a lot of time to give, especially if the warning from that woman was true.

By the time Kendall had reached the front of the second floor, it was clear to him that he wasn't going to be able to put of the rest of the fires. The place was too engulfed by flames for Kendall to do anything about it, and with that being said, it was now impossible for the blond to make his way back to the staircase he came up, with the raging fire filling in the same he'd once cleared.

"We're gonna die!" One of the researchers screamed in fear, but Kendall took a deep breath.

"We're going to be fine. Don't worry" he replied, hoping that his words would soothe her. Still, that didn't change the fact that they were currently trapped. Glancing around, Kendall hoped that he could find or think of something to help them get out, and that's when an idea clicked in his head, but it was safe to say that it was risky.

Still, it was probably their only hope. "Stand back" The blond warned, causing the few researchers with him to nod, as they took a few steps back. Bracing himself, Kendall created two ice columns beside him, hoping to keep the roof stable, before he kicked the wall blocking their way.

The building definitely crumbled at his action, but the blond had very little choice but to continue. Another kick resulted in another crumble, but on the third kick, the wall finally shattered slightly, creating a small hole for them to climb out of. The ice columns were doing their job well, keeping the roof above their heads, and with Kendall being the first to climb out, he created a slide for everyone to reach the ground, where the fire marshal and chief police were currently situation. Helping a few of the people out, Kendall made sure they were all down the slide first before he finally followed. As soon as he hit the floor, he heard screaming, with the first researcher he saved yelled to one of the firemen, who was trying to calm her down.

Curious, Kendall made his way over. "Hey, what's going on?"

"Oh Blizzard, thank god! We need to evacuate the area! There's explosive chemicals in that lab, that are going to blow at any time! But he won't listen to me!" She replied, causing Kendall to nod. Of course, as soon as she'd finished speaking, that's when the first explosion went off, Kendall's whole perspective now shifting into what felt like slow motion.

The blond turned, watching as the back of the building began to collapse in on itself while the middle exploded and without even thinking, Kendall acted fast, constructing one of the biggest ice walls he'd ever had to do. The formation of the wall was rapid, but it seems that the explosions were moving even quicker with the wall not being fully completed by the time the front of the building exploded.

Debris flew everywhere, some being blocked by the wall that Kendall had constructed while other flew into the air, their path and trajectory completely random. Everyone screamed at the events taking place, with the fire brigade trying to move people into places of safety as fast as they could, all while Kendall hoped everything they'd done would have been enough.

Finally, the wave of dust hit them, everyone coughing as it passed over them, but once that had finally cleared, the scene was finally visible to them all, with time finally speeding back up from Kendall's perspective. The laboratory that once stood was now a huge pile of debris that sat on the floor, and luckily, nobody seemed to be hurt from the explosion, with a lot of the flying debris landing in the water or in areas where luckily no one was stood.

"What the hell was that?" Kendall heard a common voice form behind him, and he turned around to see Carlos, and the fire marshal making their way over to him.

"The lab contains explosive chemicals. The fire must have only just reached them" Kendall replied, causing Carlos to blow out a breath.

"Luck thing that no one was in there when that happened. Nice work Blizzard" Carlos replied, causing a smile to grow on Kendall's face.

"Yeah, we couldn't have done it without your help" the fire marshal replied, causing Kendall to nod at him, before the marshal walked away, leaving Kendall and Carlos alone.

"Any idea what started the fire?" the blond asked, causing Carlos to shrug.

"We don't know. We haven't spoke to all of the researchers yet, but the ones that he have said that one minute, the building was fine, and the next, the upper floor was set alight." Carlos replied, but before Kendall could continue, everyone witnessed a burst of fire flying from the middle of the rubble. Everyone turned to witness what caused it, only to see a man walk upon the highest rubble mound.

"Feast your eyes upon the devastation that corruption and wealth can cause! Feast your eyes upon what greed and lust will bring you!"

"Who are you!" Kendall shouted back, interrupting the man's monologue.

"I am Inferno, and I have come to cleanse this city of wealth and corruption amongst the highest levels, starting with the Diamond Family. They have cast agony and suffering upon the people of this world, and I will make sure that they pay for what they have done, starting by scorching their empire to the ground. Let this be a warning to anyone who gets in my way, I will stop at nothing until they have paid for what they have done!" the man finished, before aiming his hands to the ground and taking off into the distance, everyone quickly losing track of him.

The entire scene was silent for a few seconds, everyone trying to process the information that had been shared, especially by Kendall.

Little did the blond know that James was only a few feet behind him.

"Chief?" James asked, his voice filled with fear and hesitance. "What…what does he mean?" James continued, almost as if he blocked out the entire speech.

"I don't know" Carlos replied, glancing at Kendall before finally turning to James. "But I will make sure that nothing happens to you or your father"

"That goes for me as well" Kendall replied, James finally looking over at him, and casting him a small smile.

"Thank you, the pair of you" James said, causing them both to nod. "I think I'm…um…going to see my father. He should be made aware of everything that's going on"

"Take Michaels and Peterson with you" Carlos replied, the two officers nodding before walking back over to James.

Before the brunet left however, he noticed how Blizzard began to remove the ash riddled piece of mask that was covering his mouth. In doing so however, it caused the entirely of the mask to slip, revealing a single strand of blond hair to appear.

Blizzard must have been as aware of this as James was, with the blond quickly hiding the piece but that sure as hell didn't stop James' suspicions from growing.

He finally had a new lead on Blizzard's identity.

* * *

"Is this it then?" Kendall asked, causing Carlos to look at him with his eyebrow raised. "The rising storm that Pulsewave spoke about?" Kendall continued, causing Carlos to let out a small shrug.

"I don't know. For all we know, it could just be a nut job who's following in Pulsewave's footprints, since someone has done it first" Carlos replied, causing Kendall to shake his head slightly.

"Chief, since I've lived in this city, there has never been a 'super villain' attack and now, we've had two in the space of about a month. Surely that's not a coincidence. Maybe this is what Pulsewave was trying to escape from, and if it is, then something is telling me that this 'Inferno' is not going to be the only villain were about to face"

That's when Carlos put his hand up to stop Kendall from talking. "Whatever this is, whether it be the rising storm or not, I know we'll be prepared for it. I'm going to start doubling patrols of the city, as well as assigning officers to monitor Diamond Inc properties."

"And what about James and his father?" Kendall asked, briefly panicking at the fact that he'd called James by his name.

Still, the Latino officer didn't seem to notice as he continued. "I'm going to speak to the two of them. Ideally, we'd want to have an officer protecting them at all times, but I can't legally do that without their consent. Its all down to them if they want protection"

"You can't be serious!" Kendall replied, Carlos raising his eyebrow once again. "You literally heard the man threaten them, and yet you're going to allow them to continue without protection if they don't want it"

"I don't really have a choice Blizzard, that's the law" Carlos replied his tone firm, causing Kendall to take a step back as he took a deep breath.

"Ok chief, I understand" Kendall replied, raising his hand into the air. "Well, I best get back out there, especially now with another villain on the loose" the blond continued, and before Carlos could reply, Kendall was already in the air skating away from the scene and towards the Diamond Inc HQ.

Kendall was going to be damned if he was going to let anything happen to James, especially after what Inferno. If he was going to stop at nothing, then Kendall would have to do the same. A sigh escaped Kendall's mouth. It was clear that he was letting his emotions get in the way of rational thought but at the same time, Diamond Inc was a powerhouse of this city, and if it fell, then you could be damn sure the city would follow closely behind.

 _'Way to rationalise it Kendall'_ His brain supplied, causing Kendall to let out another sigh. He was right, he was just trying to rationalise it and the blond knew it was best for him to stay calm and objective in these situations. The Diamonds had been threatened, that much was a fact, and from what Carlos said, if the Diamond's chose to not take this threat seriously, then there was nothing he could do about that.

Then again, Kendall didn't fall under the same jurisdiction as the police did, and the blond was in the fortunate position of being on the inside of their lives. He worked at Diamond Inc during the day, meaning that he'd be able to protect the tower and James' dad with relative ease, and during the night…well, let's just say that Kendall is going to be spending a lot more time with James.

A final sigh escaped Kendall's mouth, this time as he overlooked the Diamond Inc building. It wasn't just about the Diamonds, but also everyone who worked at their facilities, and that was one thing that Kendall knew he needed to be rational about.

After all, how could a superhero rationalise letting hundreds of people die just to save the one he loved. This new situation was definitely going to taxing for the blond, and he only hoped that Inferno will surface again rather quickly, so he can put an end to it all.

Still, while his brain seemed to believe that, his gut was telling him that this was only the start of a lot worse to come.

* * *

 **So there we have it, a bit of a shorter chapter but set up for what is to come! I hope you guys all enjoyed and things are definitely going to heat up, if you'll excuse the pun hehe.**

 **I want to say a massive thank you to Guest, Winterschild11 and RainbowDiamonds, and I'm glad you guys enjoyed it! You all seemed to love the movie date that the two of them were having, but unfortunately, something had to go wrong. Otherwise it wouldn't have been a Kames date 😜 And don't worry, we will get Kendall's backstory at some point!**

 **Anyway, I hope you guys have a good week, and I will see you on Thursday for the next chapter of Rush and Response! But until then,**

 **TTFN 😃❄**


	13. Chapter 13

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! I'm sorry for my absence last week, it was just a conclusion to all of the hectic stuff happening a couple weeks ago, but I should be back for good now! Anyway, that's enough rambling from me, let's crack on shall we?**

* * *

James let out a sigh as he sat opposite his father in the Diamond Inc building, trying to get his point across for the second time since last night's events.

"Come on dad, you heard what the man said. He made a direct threat against us, and that puts the employees at risk as well"

"It's nothing to worry about" Henry replied, not looking at James as he continued his paperwork. "I get these types of threat about once or twice a week, and so far nothing has ever come of them. I'm not worried about it"

"Yeah, but I bet those threats were from disgruntled employees or probably environmentalists, and not actual super-villains. This guy can do some serious damage dad, and the last thing we need is for anyone, including you and I, to get hurt because of them."

"You're being dramatic James. Yes, the fire at the warehouse was unfortunate but nobody was killed, we didn't lose any research and we were insured so we don't have to worry about paying for the lab to be prepared"

"Is that all you think about, the money side of it?" James asked, his father not looking up at him once again. "Some of the people in the fire were injured, but it's not just about the physical injury, they're going to suffer mentally as well, something you haven't seemed to consider."

"You kids and your health and safety concerns. When I was a kid, there was none of that." Henry replied, causing James to roll his eyes again.

"I'm just trying to put it into perspective. This guy has caused, and may cause serious harm and we need to be prepared for that. We need to make sure that everyone is going to be ok" James said, this time Henry looking up, only briefly to wave his arm in the air as if to dismiss James' statement. Before James could reply however, they both heard a pip on Henry's landline, causing Henry to finally stop what he was doing.

"Yes?" Henry asked, pushing the button on the phone, so Henry's assistant could speak.

"I've got Chief Garcia here for you sir"

"Ah, send him up" Henry replied, pushing himself up from his desk so he was standing as Carlos arrived in the lift. However, as Henry stood, he started to cough quite badly causing James to quickly stand and rub his father's back.

"I told you you need to see a specialist" James quickly commented, his father waving his hand in dismissal again before the lift door finally opened.

"Chief Garcia, what can I help you with" Henry said, shaking Carlos' hand before gesturing for him to take a seat.

"I think the question is, what can I help you with" Carlos replied, James retaking his seat next to Carlos, and opposite his father. "I'm here regarding the threat made against your family from the super-villain calling himself Inferno"

That caused Henry to roll his eyes. "Why is everyone making this into such a big thing. I told James, and I'll tell you the same thing, I get these types of threats at least once a week and nothing serious has ever come out of it, so why is this one so special" Henry said, James rolling his eyes once again, while Carlos sat up a little straighter, not having expected Henry's objective.

"This is a very serious threat Mr Diamond, and whether you get these types of threats weekly does not deter that. We saw what this 'Inferno' character is capable of, and if possible, we want to stop this from happening again. We want to make sure that no one else is injured" Carlos replied, his voice firm, yet not rude. "Now, in terms of what the SCPD can offer, I've already increased the amount of patrols within the city, and I'm making sure that any lead we have on this villain is followed. As well as that, if you want, I can assign officers to accompany you at all times to ensure that you are safe, and I can also post officers at every Diamond Inc own property within the city so make sure that you're workers feel safe. Personally, however, I could recommend that you shut down your operations until Inferno can be apprehend and put away. That way, no one's lives are being risked due to a clearly personal vendetta"

"I can tell you now that I will not be shutting down operations" Henry replied, his voice stern as well, while also verging on slightly offended. "If this company closed every time I was threatened, then we would never have opened in the first place. If there is one thing that I've learnt in business, it's that you don't shut down in the face of adversity otherwise you lose all respect, and if I shut down due to this minor inconvenience, then we'd never have the same respect again. We need to show that Diamond Inc rises above the threat of danger and that it doesn't give into it" Henry continued, causing James to roll his eyes once more.

"I think Chief Garcia is right Dad, we should suspend operations, if not only briefly. We're not the only ones affected by this, and we don't want our employees to be hurt before you let our ego get in the way of rational decisions."

"Nonsense, this is a rational decision. My decision is for the good of the business"

"But not the people who work for it. This does need to be taken seriously dad, people are in serious danger"

"I understand that James, and I'm doing what I think is right" Henry replied, his eyes piercing into James. "Now, since you're not offering anything helpful, I suggest you make yourself scarce. You do have work to get done after all" Henry said, his tone final, causing James to roll his eyes and shake his head once again.

"Since he's not going to say it, thank you for your concern Chief Garcia" James said, causing Carlos to nod before James finally walked away, heading to the lift. James heard that very little was said between the two of them as he walked away, and as soon as the lift door shut, James let out a huge sigh as his head lulled back against the wall.

It was clear that his father wasn't taking this seriously.

* * *

When James arrived down to lobby, he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. Curious as to who it was, the brunet found himself pulling his phone out while he took a seat in the small waiting area that the lobby contained, and glee filled his face when he'd saw that Kendall has sent him a message. After last night, with the two of them cuddling on the sofa, as well as more, James knew that they were good in a good place. His glee grew further when he saw the message.

 _'Hey, I just finished my lunch break? Wanna grab something together?'_ The message read, the smile on James' face growing massively as he typed a message back.

 _'Sounds good. I'm in the lobby of Diamond Inc, so I'll meet you here_ ' James replied, and it was mere seconds before a response came in.

 _'Be down in a few. See you soon'_ Kendall had responded with, James letting out a sigh of relief as he leaned back on the sofa he was sat on.

At least there was one good thing that he could focus on at the moment, and with everything that was going on, he knew that was important.

As he waited, James found himself scrolling through his social media, which seemed to be filled with posts about last night. People were either posting their support to the victims of the fire, or spreading news about it and Inferno who had seemed to crop up from nowhere. This whole idea of super-villains was still bizarre to the brunet, despite the fact that his job involved him reporting on the superhero protecting them all, although James put that down to his optimism.

The thought of someone out there looking out for everyone was heart-warming, whereas the thought of the positive was daunting. The lift dinged, and James' heart jumped slightly at the thought of who it was, but when he looked up, he saw that it was Chief Garcia who was looking massively disheartened. Feeling for the young chief, James found himself jumping up from the sofa as he beckoned the man.

"Chief Garcia!" James called out, the Latino looking over to him as he tried to put a professional face back on.

"Mr Diamond, I assumed that you'd left"

"Please, call me James. Mr Diamond is my father" James replied, distaste lingering on every word. "And I'm actually just waiting for someone. I just wanted to thank you for what you were trying to do. I know my father can be taxing at times, but I wanted you to know that I appreciate you trying"

"I'm just doing my job" Carlos said, causing James to playfully roll his eyes at the officer. "Thanks James, that means a lot." Carlos continued, a small smile growing on his face. "And despite what your father has said, you shouldn't be too surprised if you see a few police officers loitering around where you are" the Latino continued, causing James to let out a small chuckle.

"I can't imagine my dad would be happy if he knew that."

"Let's just say it's best he doesn't know" Carlos said, causing another chuckle to leave James.

* * *

As the lift door opened, Kendall was greeted with the sight of James chatting to Chief Garcia, and he couldn't help the small smile that grew on his face due to it. At least Kendall could see that Carlos was trying to make sure that James was safe. Little did Carlos know that Kendall was already doing that job, and that seemed to take up the majority of his mind as he walked over to the police chief and his…James.

"James, Chief Garcia, it's a pleasure to meet you" Kendall said, as he finally reached the two of them, feeling slightly weird at the fact that he had to introduce himself to the police chief. Of course, Blizzard and Carlos knew each other, but Kendall and Carlos had never met, hence why Kendall introduced himself, despite how weird it was.

"Chief Garcia, this is Kendall Knight. He's my…um"

"Pleasure" Carlos said, luckily saving James from the awkward moment, one that he was unaware that Kendall had just had moments ago.

"Nice to meet you as well" Kendall replied, shaking the hand that Carlos had reached out.

"So, what are you two discussing?" the blond continued to ask, causing Carlos' eyes to flick to James.

"That's for James to divulge if he wishes. Now, if you'll excuse me"

"Of course, and thank you once again Chief" James replied, causing Carlos to nod before leaving the two men together. With Carlos walking away, Kendall couldn't seem to resist the urge to lean up and peck James on the cheek, causing a small to grow on the brunet's face.

"You're so cute when you stumble over your words" Kendall said, causing a blush to grow on James' face.

"Well, you know, I didn't want to presume anything" the brunet replied, reaching down to thread his fingers through Kendall's. "But I would like it if you were my boyfriend" the brunet continued, this time Kendall blushing at the suggestion.

"I'd like that as well" the blond replied, glee returning to James' face as he leant down to peck a kiss onto Kendall's lips, one that the blond met eagerly.

"So, lunch?" James asked, causing Kendall to nod before the two of them began to make their way out of the Diamond Inc building.

With a slight chill in the air, James found himself wrapping his arm across Kendall's shoulder, something the blond snuggled into as he began to ask questions again. "So, what were you talking to Chief Garcia about?"

"Just about the threat that was made against us yesterday" James replied, causing Kendall to frown slightly, remembering the moment clearly. "Chief Garcia just came up to inform my father on the situation, as well as offer any support he could. He was telling us about how he's upped patrols within the city, and that he's following every lead on Inferno that they have, but he wanted to see if we wanted any protection. You know, officers posted at Diamond Inc Facilities or if father and I wanted officers with us"

"And what did you say?" Kendall asked, looking up at James with a small glint of hope in his eyes.

"My father said no" James said, causing that hope to fade away. "He said that it would 'ruin the respect we've earned' if we showed that we were fearful of this threat. He kept saying that he gets threats like this commonly and that it was nothing to worry about."

"But what about you? Surely, you have some sort of say?" Kendall asked, causing James to shake his head.

"Dad made the fact that I don't pretty clear. I kept telling him that what Chief Garcia was saying was the right thing to do, but he wasn't listening. He even kicked me out" James let out a humorous chuckle, before glancing down at Kendall, who was looking down at the floor. "Hey, don't worry about me. The chief said that I shouldn't be surprised if I see a few officers loitering around where I am. I'll be fine Kendall. Besides, Blizzard also said he'd protect me" James said, and that caused Kendall to glance up at the brunet.

"Oh yeah?" Kendall asked, a smug smile growing on his face.

"Yeah, so I'm going to be fine. Although, I have to admit, I'm curious to see how this is going to play about. Ice vs Fire, who is going to win"

"My bet's on Blizzard" Kendall replied, causing James to let out a little chuckle before agreeing. Kendall however was completely serious.

The blond knew that he had to win, especially if he wanted to keep James…and the city, safe.

* * *

The two of them finally settled on a small little restaurant, and as they took a seat, conversation picked up again. "How are you getting on, with the whole situation? I can imagine it's difficult working in a building which is now under threat" James asked.

"It's probably not as difficult as having a threat target you exactly" Kendall replied with, causing James to let out another small chuckle. "But yeah, I'm doing ok. I'm just trying to continue on as normal and not think about it. I know that some people aren't holding up so well though" Kendall continued, causing James to raise his eyebrow at the blond. "I overheard a few people in the lift freaking out about the whole thing, saying that they were in danger in the building, and I can tell that the whole place is a little bit tense"

"I'm sorry about that" James replied, causing Kendall to shake his head as he placed his hand over James'.

"What do you mean, your sorry. This has absolutely nothing to do with you"

"But it does though. My last name is the reason that all of this is happening, and the reason that everyone is in danger"

"But you're not corrupt James, and you haven't cast agony and suffering on the word" Kendall replied, and he saw something quickly flash in James' eyes before it went away.

"Still, I feel responsible for putting everyone in danger, for putting _you_ in danger"

"I'll be fine James, I can take care of myself, that's what happens when you're raised in an orphanage" Kendall replied, letting out a humourless chuckle of his own. When he said that, he saw that James was glancing down at the table, so Kendall gave his hand another squeeze. "Seriously James, none of this is your fault. Besides, the police are doing what they can to bring this man to justice and I'm positive that Blizzard is ready to spring into action at the first sign of trouble. Nothing is going to happen to you or your father James"

"Thank you" James replied, a small smile on his face as he lifted their connected hands to give Kendall's a small kiss.

"And I'll make sure that nothing happens to you as well" he continued, causing Kendall to blush slightly while he chuckle at the moment. The waiter came over and took their orders once the moment was over, and when he was gone again, James started a new conversation. "And speaking of Blizzard" he began, leaning in slightly as he began to whisper. "You'll never guess what I've found out"

"What?" Kendall asked, raising his eyebrow while he swallowed the lump in his throat.

"He's blond" James whispered back, a massive grin growing on his face, while Kendall tried to act surprised.

 _'Shit, James saw the small strand of hair that slipped from my mask'_ The blond thought to himself, but he didn't let himself get distracted.

"That means, I finally have a lead! If not a very ambiguous one" the brunet continued, causing Kendall to nod.

"Yeah, I mean, half the population of the city are blond"

"Like I said, an ambiguous one. But still, it means I'm closer to finding out who Blizzard is, and I haven't had anything like this since this whole thing started." James enthused, and his optimist was contagious with Kendall growing a smile of his own.

"Well, I'm happy for you" Kendall began, squeezing James' hand once again. "You've finally got something to go off"

 _'And something to bring him closer to the truth'_ His brain supplied, but the blond didn't let that ruin this moment, with Kendall capturing James' joy.

* * *

 **So there we have it, a dialogue heavy chapter after everything that happened last time! James' dad has refused any help that Carlos has offered, despite James' objection and it seems like everyone is taking this Inferno threat pretty seriously!**

 **I'd like to give a massive thank you to Guest, Winterschild11, RainbowDiamonds and EpicallyObsessed for reviewing the last chapter, and you all hoped that this threat is dealt with quickly! And you were all curious to see whether James would make the connection or not. So far, it seems like he hasn't but who knows what will happen when he starts to research properly. And to answer RainbowDiamond's question, this was a different lab to the main building...let's just say, I'm saving that one until later 😜**

 **Anyway, I will see you on Thursday for the next chapter of Rush and Response, but until then,**

 **TTFN 😃❄**


	14. Chapter 14

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! I am super excited to get this chapter out to you, and I have to admit, writing it was a welcome break for me! Anyway, let's crack on with it shall we?**

* * *

It was safe to say that while Kendall enjoyed the rest of the meal with James, the two of them easily holding conversation with each other and joking with each other, the blond was worried about what James had told him. It always sat at the back of his mind, causing worry to spread through the blond as James spoke. And it wasn't even as if the clue that James had discovered was a big one, as like Kendall said, a large number of people in the city had blond hair, but it was more the worry that James would start to piece everything together.

The brunet was definitely resourceful, Kendall knew this from reading James' articles. He went in depth into everything, and always tried to include as much evidence was he could to back up what he was saying, and Kendall has already seen the inquisitive side of him when James started to question why Kendall wasn't sleeping as much as he should have been. These two things together were a brilliant combination for a journalist, but for someone who was trying to keep a secret, they were a nightmare. Kendall smiled at something James said, now completely lost in his mind. He would definitely have to be more careful with what he was doing, as he certainly couldn't afford to give any more clues away, but that may pose difficult with the amount of contact that Kendall, and Blizzard, were about to have with James.

After the threat that Inferno had made, Kendall was certain that he was going to spend as much time with James as he could, to ensure that the brunet stayed safe, but at the the same time, that may put him in an even worse position as before, as more time together means more time for Kendall to say something, or do something that could give it away. He'd just have to stay alert and watch what he did.

"Do you need to head back?" James said, snapping the blond out of his thought process as he glanced down at his watch.

"I still have about 15 minutes" Kendall replied, causing a small smile to grow on James' face.

"Fancy a slow walk? It's getting quite busy in here"

"Sounds great" Kendall replied, the blond flashing James a small smile back as he grabbed his jacket from the back of his chair and stood up. Hand in hand, the two of them made their way out of the restaurant and began to wonder the streets, chatting generically about work and life.

"Any luck finding a new experiment site?" James asked, causing Kendall to let out a little sigh as he shrugged.

"Not really. We've found a couple locations that would be suitable for testing, but they don't have all of the factors that we were looking for. They'd produce some sort of results, but it's whether we could trust them or not is the big question there. Dr Mitchell has assured me that we have all the time we need to choose a new location, but I think even he's starting to get a little stressed out with it." Kendall replied, causing James to squeeze his hand in support.

"Well, I'm sure you'll find something soon, and if not, then I'm sure you'll figure something out with those other locations"

"Thanks. Like I said, these are only the early stages of it, so we still have a lot of research ahead of us to do. Hopefully, it will turn out ok." Kendall said, before glancing up at James. "How about you, and your work?"

"Yeah, it's going alright" James said, letting out a sigh as he did so. "I'm supposed to be writing a piece on the Inferno attack, but every time I do, I have to stop about half way through and take a break. It's a lot for me to write especially when I know that I'm the cause of it"

"Hey, we talked about this, it's not your fault" Kendall said, squeezing James' hand back to show his support.

"Thanks." James replied, flashing Kendall small smile. "I'll probably get it finished tonight, and then it can be published late tomorrow. Hopefully, it'll turn out alright"

"I'm sure it'll be fine. And I'll be keeping an eye out for it, so you'll at least have one reader" Kendall teased causing James to let out a little chuckle.

"Your support is flattering" he joked, causing Kendall to stick his tongue out at James as a response, the two of them smiling at each other as they did so. That's when James tugged on Kendall's arm slightly, causing Kendall to spin into him, James placing his arm around Kendall's waist. "It does mean a lot to me though, so thank you" James said, his tone serious causing a smile and blush to litter Kendall's face.

"No worries, that's what boyfriends are for" Kendall replied, James smiling back down at the blond, their eyes catching each other's. Within seconds, the two of them were leaning in but before their lips could connect, a loud bang when off from nearby causing both of them to jump as the once noisy street descended into silence. "What was that?" Kendall asked, breaking the silence between them as everyone on the street started to ask the same question.

"Not a clue" James replied, glancing about before he spotted a plume of smoke rising into the air.

Instincts seemed to kick in, and as soon as James had said where the smoke was coming from, he found himself running towards it, Kendall's hand still in his with the blond accompanying him.

* * *

As they reached the source of the smoke, the two of them gazed upon a site where a building once sat, but now it was just a smoking pile of rubble. James' free hand came to cover his mouth as shock filled his body, while his other hand found itself grabbing hold of Kendall's with a new found strength, the brunet needing something to connect him back to real life.

Kendall was in a similar situation, shock filling his body over what had occurred, but his immediate reaction was to try and reach a secluded place where he could change into Blizzard. That possibility was slowly getting less and less likely however, with more people crowding round to view what had occurred and with James' grip on his hand, Kendall knew that it would be very unlikely for him to get away. It seemed the blond was powerless in this situation, a feeling that was completely foreign to him and one that he was quickly realising that he didn't like.

It only seemed to get worse however when a voice started to boom over them, and the entire crowd of people all turned at once to face where the voice was coming from. Everyone seemed to recoil at the sight greeting them, whereas Kendall's instincts to change reared its head once again, despite the fact that the possibility for him to change was now non-existent, the blond still hand in hand with James right in the middle of the crowd of people.

Instead, Kendall's only choice was to stare up at the woman stood atop the building, two swords crossing on her back with a cyclone throwing knife sat on top of them. Down her legs, smaller throwing knives were present and across her chest sat a bandoleer filled with grenades. Anxiety within Kendall rose tenfold, the blond's feeling of powerlessness tripling with him completely aware at the fact that he was now at the mercy of this woman stood above them. For the first time in a long while, Kendall actually felt fearful of what might happen next.

"I've come for Blizzard" The woman shouted, her voice sweet despite her outward persona and that only seemed to make it creepier and more worrying.

 _'And what is it with villains and monologuing? You don't see me monologuing when I arrive somewhere'_ Kendall thought to himself, but he didn't let himself get distract as she continued to speak.

"Now, my darlings, do you know where he is?" she said, causing everyone to glance around slightly as if to expect Blizzard to come swooping in. Little did they know he was currently trapped in the centre of them all. "Such a shame, I really was hoping he'd turn up. I was looking forward to meeting him…Maybe, he just need a little more persuasion" she continued, now launching two grenades towards the building that sat either side of the rubble pile on the floor.

As soon as they made contact, they exploded with the explosion being bigger and louder than any Kendall has heard before, including the waterside lab. Everyone tried to move back as the two buildings toppled to the floor, but due to the sheer amount of people, it was difficult for them to do so, meaning they were all engulfed in the cloud of debris that radiated out from the two rubble piles. Inside, Kendall was berating himself at the fact that there was nothing he could do to help everyone, but he also knew whatever he attempted would alert everyone to his secret something that he also didn't need.

"Well well well, it looks like you're super-saviour has abandoned you, and such a pity as well, I was really hoping to spar with him for a challenge. After all, we need to know which one of us is the best." Switchblade continued, anger now boiling in Kendall at the fact that this was entirely out of self-curiosity. His grip on James' hand tightened further, but he doubted that James even noticed, the brunet being completely pre-occupied with the terror that this villain was causing.

"Well, since I'm getting nothing out of him now, I suppose I'll have to try again tomorrow. And if you are listening Blizzard, you can expect to find me tomorrow at the old cemetery. That way it'll make it easier to bury you. Just make sure, you show up, I'm capable of a lot worse than this, and there are many tall buildings in this city that have my name on them. But until then" The woman grinned, Kendall noticing how she was reaching for one of the grenades in the bandoleer. "Ta-ta" she finished, launching the grenade into the air.

As the object reached it peak arc, it exploded releasing smoke over the crowd, Kendall's heart slowing at the fact that they were in any immediate danger. Still, through the smoke, Kendall saw as the woman ran off, a back flip accompanying her exit strategy, while everyone around him descended into coughing fits as the smoke finally reached their lungs.

* * *

When the smoke finally cleared, the first thing James did was grab hold of Kendall, and pull the blond into a tight hug.

"Are you ok?" he asked, causing Kendall to nod into his chest.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. Just a little shaken. How are you?" Kendall replied, pulling out of the hug to that he could look up at James' face.

"I'm a little shaken as well. I can't believe that someone could do such a thing" James replied, Kendall nodding along with what James had said. Kendall could never seem to get over the fact that someone would use their powers for personal gain instead of helping someone. "But what I think I'm the most shocked at was the fact that Blizzard didn't turn up when he was needed the most" James finished, causing Kendall's heart to drop slightly in his chest, especially when he heard the disappointment in James' voice.

"I'm sure he had a good reason not to turn up. Maybe he just physically couldn't, or maybe he was busy helping someone else" Kendall replied, causing James to let out a large sigh as he went to speak.

Before he could say anything however, the two of them were greeted with the ringing of James' phone, and after taking one look at who it was, James rolled his eyes as he pressed the answer button, Griffin immediately shouting to him down the phone. With one ear covered by his phone, James used his finger to push the other one in, in order to help him hear better over the noise the crowd was making, but Griffin was speaking loud enough for Kendall to even hear small parts of what was being said.

The basic gist was that Griffin was telling James to get back to the office so that he could start writing up the events of Switchblade's appearance, and Kendall heard that Griffin wanted James to focus massively on the absence of Blizzard, something that caused Kendall's heart to drop further as guilt filled him. As James hung up on the phone, he let out a massive sigh while rubbing his forehead.

"Sorry about that, it was work. They really need me to come in" James said, causing Kendall to nod.

"I understand. I can imagine this is a big event that Griffin wants covered" Kendall replied, James nodding back.

"Yeah, are you sure you're ok? I don't want to leave you if anything's wrong."

"Honestly, I'm fine James, you head into work. I'm gonna head up front, and see if I can help anyone." Kendall replied, causing James to flash Kendall a small smile, but the blond knew it was fake.

"Are you working later? At the café, I mean?" James asked, causing Kendall to nod. "Alright, I'll be there"

"I'll see you later, and good luck with work" Kendall replied, causing James to lean down and kiss him on the cheek before the brunet made his way away from the chaotic scene they were both stood in.

True to his word, Kendall found himself pushing his way to the front of the crowd hoping that he could help someone out. It would be fair to say that this urgency to help someone derived from the powerlessness that Kendall had experienced earlier, and as the blond made his way closer to the destroyed building, the guilt he was feeling sat heavier in his chest.

As he reached the front, he noticed the emergency services were alright in action, the police maintaining crowd control and taking witness statements while the ambulance service helped the wounded. The fire brigade were beginning to dig through the rubble in case there were any survivors, and Kendall had the brief thought of how weird it was to see them working in tangent with each other from a civilian perspective. Guilt washed through his body again, and he cast his eyes down to the floor, as he reflected on how little he did. Luckily, before he got pulled down that rabbit hole completely, he heard his name being shouted.

"Kendall?" he heard, and when he looked up, he saw Chief Garcia looking at him, while waving him over. "Where you here when the attack happened?" Carlos asked, causing Kendall to nod.

"Yeah, James and I were"

"Any injuries?" Carlos asked, causing Kendall to shake his head.

"No, we were further back so we weren't hit by the blast."

"And would you mind making a witness statement?" Carlos asked, causing Kendall to shake his head.

"Anything I can do to help" the blond replied, before launching into what had happened. Telling it again, however, only made Kendall feel worse.

* * *

As James arrived on his floor in the Dispatch Weekly Building, he noticed how the place was completely bustling with people, with it being busier than usual. Still, James didn't let that deter him as he made his way to his desk, where he was greeted by Camille, who wrapped her arms around James as she pulled him into a hug.

"Oh my god, are you ok?" she asked, causing James to nod into her shoulder.

"Yeah, I'm fine." James replied, causing her to pull out of the hug.

"Thank god, I was so worried" Camille said, causing James to flash her a small smile as he took his seat at his desk.

Loading up the computer, James' mind started to wonder, mostly back to the Switchblade attack and Blizzard's lack of arrival. James couldn't help the fear that spread throughout him as he thought about it, negative thoughts filling his mind, mostly the fear that if Blizzard didn't show up to the bombing of three building, then would he show up if he or his father were in danger.

 _'You got a personal promise declaration from Blizzard himself'_ he tried to justify it, but that didn't seem to help him. A sigh escaped James' mouth as he began to type. It was safe to say that his unwavering belief in Blizzard may have started to waver slightly.

Little did James know that during that entire Switchblade encounter, he was probably the safest person there, with Blizzard stood right next to him.

* * *

 **So there we have it, super-villain number two, and this time she is out to get Kendall or Blizzard specifically. I wonder how this is going to end?**

 **I want to give a massive thank you to Guest, Winterschild11, RainbowDiamonds and EpicallyObsessed for reviewing the last chapter and I'm so glad you all enjoyed it! You all seem to think that something is going to happen to Mr Diamond, especially because of his lack of seriousness about the whole Inferno thing. I'm also so glad that you're all still loving Kames, and trust me, I have so much more planned for them. We just have a few minor details, like a secret identity, to sort out first 😜. I'm also curious to hear how you guys think James is going to find out Kendall is Blizzard, so please let me know!**

 **I will see you on Thursday for the next chapter of Rush and Response, and I hope you all have a good week. My week is going to be filled with me writing a dissertation proposal that I left until the last minute...Anyway, I hope your weeks are great and I will see you Thursday, but until then,**

 **TTFN 😃❄**


	15. Chapter 15

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! So, I firstly want to apologise for the sketchiness of my upload schedule recently! It's been a little off kilter since the beginning of March, so I just want to apologise for that, as well as say I will try my best to make sure that uploads are up on time! The exception to that will be the 29th April and the 2nd May, as I will be away in Ireland for that week, so I won't be able to upload anything! Anyway, I'm rambling now, but I wanted to let you guys know now in advance! Anyway, I hope this chapter makes up for all the missed ones!**

* * *

Suffice to say that Kendall spent the rest of the day panicking about the events that transpired at lunch time, with him currently stood at his desk, staring at the blank screen. Whatever he was supposed to be doing was forgotten as the blond continued to contemplate the destruction that was caused by Switchblade. As the news circulated, Kendall learnt that only a few people were caught in the explosion of the buildings, with them reporting that 4 people had died.

Some would consider that lucky considering the building was built to house close to 50 people, but to Kendall it was a reminder that people out there were in danger and that it was up to him to protect as many as them as he could, especially from threats such as Inferno or Switchblade which Kendall knew the police themselves wouldn't be able to contend with, despite Carlos' experience and leadership skills.

As well as that, the quote from Pulsewave kept looming over him, and it was safe to say that the storm had definitely started to rise, with the sudden appearance of two super villains, when the city once had none. Kendall couldn't help but wonder if this was only the start of it, and if it was, what else was there to come. How much worse could this get. The blond dreaded to think about it, and luckily he was dragged from his thought process when he saw Logan stood in front of him.

"Is that cosmogenic nuclide dating completed yet?" the doctor asked, causing Kendall to shake his head.

"No, it's got a few more minutes left on it" the blond replied, looking up at Logan to see the doctor had a sympathetic look on his face.

"Are you sure you're ok Kendall? If you need to, you can take the rest of the afternoon off like I said earlier" Logan asked, causing Kendall to let out a sigh.

"I don't know doc, it's just a lot to take in" Kendall replied, breathing out a sigh as he took a seat in his desk chair. "I mean, I always thought that Spirit City was a safe place, so why are we becoming littered with super-villains?"

"I don't know" Logan replied, reaching over to his desk chair so that he could pull it up and sit next to Kendall. "But what we've got to remember is that we've got Blizzard looking over us. Whatever's happening, I know that he's looking out for us"

"I'm sure you're right" Kendall replied, a small smile growing on this face at Logan's confidence in him. It was certainly needed at this point, with Kendall's self esteem at an all-time low. "And as for Spirit City being safe, this place has always had its troubles Kendall, the city has definitely had a bit of a rough history. But what you've got to remember is that this place has always recovered. Even from when times felt like nothing could get better, this city and its people have always banded together to make a change. So, I wouldn't worry too much about it. If the need arrives, the people will band together" Logan continued, causing Kendall to raise an eyebrow at him.

The blond certainly wasn't aware of this, and it was definitely something to look into at a later date.

"As for now, I suggest you try to take your mind off of it. There's not much that we can do at the moment" Logan continued, and just as he finished, the computer blipped at him.

"Thanks Doc, that was a real help" Kendall replied, Logan smiling at him as the two of them got to their feet.

Logan's talk had definitely helped calm some of his nerves, and while he knew that getting on with his work would help for the moment, it was safe to say that his doubts and worries were still at the back of his mind.

* * *

James was still slightly shaken by what had happened earlier as well, so he was slightly relieved when he finally stepped foot into the coffee shop that Kendall worked in. The blond was serving another table when he walked in, but that didn't stop the quick glance and heart-warming smile that Kendall briefly gave him before returning to his customers. James took his seat in his usual booth, loading up his laptop in the process which included the work he'd done on this latest piece about the Switchblade attack.

Much like Griffin had ordered, the piece focused on Blizzard's lack of appearance but the way that James was trying to write it was to try and justify why Blizzard didn't appear. Still, James' own doubts still clouded his mind, and his own worry about Blizzard's lack of appearance did infiltrate parts of the papers.

"Hey, you alright?" Kendall asked as he approached James' table, causing the brunet to flash Kendall small smile.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. How are you getting on?" James asked, causing Kendall to shrug as he let out a sigh, pouring James a cup of coffee in the process.

"Yeah, I think I'm holding out ok" Kendall said, causing James to rise an eyebrow at him. "I'm just a little worried is all, but I…um…I need to get back to work"

"I'm sure you can take a few minutes break" James replied, reaching out to grab Kendall's hand in the hopes of settling the blond.

"Let me see if I can take my break now" Kendall replied, flashing James a small smile before he shot off out the back. It was about 5 minutes later when Kendall returned, the blond holding a couple toasted sandwiches in his hand. "I realised I didn't take your food order, but I hope this is ok?" Kendall asked, causing James to nod.

"Yeah, it's fine" James replied, causing Kendall to smile as he placed the two plates down as he slid into the booth opposite James. As soon as he did, James reached out to grab the blond's hand, something that Kendall relaxed into. "Now, what's up?"

"I'm just a little scared is all" Kendall replied, thinking about what he was going to say. "I suppose earlier was a little…shocking. I mean, hearing about the horror on the news is one thing, but being there and being so…powerless to stop it, it was worrying. I mean, we've now got two super-villains roaming the streets, and what if Blizzard can't take them?" Kendall asked, his anxiety now hitting him in full force.

Still, the blond tried not to give anything away as he spoke as he didn't need James finding out his secret identity.

"I mean, battling Pulsewave seemed like a challenge enough, but now there is two of them, and Blizzard's not going to be able to be at two places at once, and what if he's fighting once when the other attacks somewhere else. A lot of people could get injured or worse James, and you could be one of them" Kendall finished, finally looking up at James after he realised that he was staring at the table the entire time, a lone tear rolling down his face.

This was the first time in a long time that Kendall had questioned himself and his abilities and it was safe to say that he didn't like it one bit.

"Hey, it's ok" James said, lifting his hand to wipe the tear from Kendall's eye. "I have to admit, I'm a little worried as well, especially after Blizzard's no show earlier, but we've got to try and remain positive. I'm sure whatever crops up, Blizzard's going to be able to face. We just have to have hope in situations like this, as dwelling on what could go wrong won't help" James replied, causing Kendall to nod, despite the fact that James' own doubt hurt him slightly. Still, Kendall couldn't blame him. "And besides, if you are worried, then maybe you could…if you wanted, sleep round mine tonight?" the brunet asked, causing Kendall to glance up at him. "Cause you know, that way we'd be together, so we don't need to be worried about each other being alone"

"Yeah, yeah, that sounds nice" Kendall replied, smiling back at James.

The blond had to admit that sleeping round James' would make him feeling better. Not only would he be with James the entire night, it also mean that he'd be able to protect him if Inferno did decide to attack. And hopefully, Switchblade would keep to her promise, and wouldn't do anything unless Blizzard didn't turn up tomorrow. Kendall was pulled out of his thought process whenever when he felt squeeze his hand, the blond greeted with a small, shy smile on James' face.

"Ok, well, I wait until you finish, and we can walk back to mine together" the brunet said, causing Kendall to nod, before he glanced over his shoulder at the clock on the wall. Realising that his break was already over, the blond nodded as he stood up.

"That sounds perfect" Kendall replied, placing a small kiss onto James' cheek before standing up. "I've got to get back to work, but we'll chat later"

"I'll be here" James replied, causing Kendall to blush slightly as he walked away from the table.

* * *

It was about 3 hours later when Kendall and James finally walked into James' apartment, and the blond already felt a lot calmer as soon as he walked through the door. "Um, do you want anything? A drink maybe?" James asked as he shut the door behind the two of them and locked it before turning to Kendall.

"Yeah, some water sounds great please. Where you do want me to put my bag?" Kendall replied, sliding the bag he was carrying off his shoulder.

"My room is fine…unless of course, you don't want to sleep in there, then you can always put it in the spare room" James replied, realising that he was being pretty presumptuous. A small blush settled on his cheeks, as it did on Kendall's, but the blond just smiled at him.

"Your room sounds good" the blond replied, his eyes casting down to the floor slightly in nervousness.

"It's just down the hall, first door on the left" James replied, smiling at the blond before making his way into the kitchen to grab the two of them a drink. When he looked back at Kendall, he saw that the blond flashed him a small smile before disappearing down the hall, James now grateful that he'd made his bed this morning.

While Kendall was away, James quickly checked the news to see if anything was going on. That had become a nervous habit of his, especially with the threat against him and his father, so the brunet was relieved when he saw that nothing of major importance was being said. Well, it was probably important to someone else, but not to him.

Shaking the thought from his head, James looked up just in time to see Kendall walking back into the room, causing the brunet to flash him a small as he walked over to the blond and handed him the bottle of water from the fridge.

"Thanks" Kendall replied, popping the cap open and taking a swig, the entire time James focusing on how the blond's adam's apple bobbed while he drunk. When Kendall had finished, James quickly tore his eyes away, a small blush settling on his face once again.

"So, do you wanna watch a film or something?"

"Yeah, sounds good" Kendall replied, causing James to lead the two of them over to living area, James throwing himself onto the sofa, as Kendall followed.

* * *

It wasn't long after that that Kendall was straddling James' chest, the two of them kissing as some film played in the background, the two of them pleased to be escaping reality. Everything was forgotten about in that moment, the two of them perfectly content as they held each other in their arms, James' arms resting on Kendall's sides while Kendall's were cupping James' face as they kissed. When the two of them finally pulled out of the kiss, the smile on James' face was huge, causing Kendall to grin back down at him.

"What's got you so happy?" the blond asked, reaching down to peck another kiss onto James' lips.

"You" James replied, causing a small blush to settle on Kendall's face. "I really like you Kendall"

"I like you too" Kendall replied, leaning down to place another kiss onto James' lips. Of course, as soon as their lips touched, James took control, the blond moaning as he felt James' tongue swipe across his bottom lip.

Taking the opportunity, James' tongue worked its way into Kendall's mouth, the blond moaning at that action as well, this hands now moving onto James' pecs as the blond felt the firm muscle beneath his hands. James' hands worked their way to the blond's ass, causing a small blush to grow on Kendall's face as they both pulled out of the kiss.

"Wanna…um…go to the bedroom?" Kendall asked, glancing towards the glass wall that provided them with a view of them city, or maybe more importantly in this situation, provided the city with a view of them. James said nothing, instead twisting on the sofa, before pushing the two of them up, Kendall's arms now firmly around James' neck as the brunet began to carry him to his room.

"Sounds good to me" James grinned, causing Kendall to lean back into a kiss from James, the brunet on autopilot as he made his way back to his room. It wasn't long before James dropped Kendall onto his bed, the blond astounded by its softness especially considering his own mattress, but his mind was quickly pushed onto another topic as James began to take his top off.

The blond watched as James teased him, with the brunet slowly revealing his torso. Kendall was shocked by how toned James' body was, the blond mesmerised as he watched James' muscles flexed and as soon as the top was off, Kendall found himself leaning up and wrapping his arms around James' neck, pulling the brunet into another eager kiss, one James was happy to return. With James laid on top of Kendall, the blond could feel James' clothed erection rubbing against his own, causing the blond to grind slightly, James now moaning at the action, causing a mischievous grin to grow on Kendall's face.

James chuckled slightly at the look on Kendall's face, before James found himself grinding his hips back, causing Kendall to moan, James now reaching down as he began to pull Kendall's top from the blond's body. The blond lifted himself, allowing the top to be completed freed before the two of them began to make out again, this time James trailing some kisses down Kendall's neck. Again, James was shocked by how cold Kendall's body was, but in this moment, James definitely didn't mind, with Kendall's body temperature balancing his own out.

"Fuck James, I need you now" Kendall panted, squirming slightly due to the pleasure that James was providing him. It was safe to say that it had been a while since the blond had let himself do anything like this, and boy was he loving it. He offered no resistance when he felt James begin to tug on his trousers, and with one swift motion, both Kendall's trousers and pants were off, leaving the blond completely naked as James stood over him.

The brunet was taken back by how beautiful Kendall was, a small blush growing on Kendall's face as James' gaze raked over him, but as if to settle the blond's own nerves, James undid his belt allowing his trousers to fall free, revealing every inch of himself to the blond.

With a grin on his face, James leaned down and placed a kiss onto Kendall's lips, all while reaching over to his bedside table, where a small bottle of lube and a box of condoms sat in his top draw. It wasn't like James regularly had people round, but it was more for situations like this, where the brunet wanted to be ready. Grabbing the small bottle, James pulled out of the kiss slightly and grinned at Kendall while the blond brought his knees up to his chest, ready for what was coming next.

Pouring a generous amount of lube onto his fingers, James rubbed them together to make sure that it wasn't too cold, and after leaning down to place a small kiss onto Kendall's lips, the brunet asked if Kendall was ready, causing the blond to nod. Kissing Kendall once more, James slowly pushed one finger into the blond, causing Kendall to tense up slightly.

James stopped moving while he let Kendall adjust to the feeling, the brunet resisting all of his urges to push his finger in further and when he felt Kendall relax, James continued to push until his finger was all the way in. Kendall let out a small sigh at the feeling, and when James stared into his eyes once more, Kendall nodded causing James to slowly begin circling his finger, opening Kendall up. It wasn't long before Kendall was rutting back against James, a second one in place with the first, the blond moaning at James' actions.

"I need you now" Kendall said, panting as he continued to grind against James' fingers.

"You sure?" James asked, causing Kendall to nod breathlessly yet firmly. James couldn't help the grin on his face, as he slowly pulled his fingers out of Kendall, and the blond whimpered slightly at the loss, but it wasn't long before James was pressing himself against Kendall's hole, condom on and dick lubed. James slowly began to push his head in, Kendall's tight heat engulfing him completed and it took all of James' restrain to stop from pushing in all at once. Instead, the brunet made sure that Kendall was alright, placing small kisses onto the blond's lips as he pushed in to keep the blond distracted from the pain he was feeling.

Fully sheathed, James waited as Kendall adjusted to his presence, the blond's pain slowly dissipating into pleasure, and with one final nod, James pulled out and pushed back in slowly, the first jab directly pressing against Kendall's prostate. The blond moaned at the spark of pleasure that flowed through his veins, his hips now involuntarily rolling back against James' dick, the brunet moaning back at the action. The two of them were intertwined with each other, Kendall's arms wrapped around James' neck while James' hands were either side of the blond's face, helping to support himself, while the two of them were lip locked in a kiss which only seemed to deepen their experience.

Every time James pushed in, Kendall's hips were there to greet him, the two of them settling into a perfect rhythm of pleasure, one that quickly overwhelmed the two men. With one perfectly placed thrust, Kendall came hands free, his cum covering his chest and James' own and as Kendall's orgasm hit, so did James' with the blond clenching around him. The room was engulfed with the sound of pleasure, the two of them moaning out before James finally collapsed on top of the blond, all of his energy spent.

With the little energy he had, James pulled out of the blond, before reaching over to grab a couple of tissues to clean the two of them up. With the cum removed, the two of them shuffled up the bed slightly, and with Kendall's head resting on James' chest while James' arm kept Kendall into place, the two of them fell into a sleep, probably the best one both of them had had in ages.

* * *

As James found himself rushing towards the old cemetery, he couldn't help but smile at the events of last night, and this morning. When the two of them had woken up, they were both so content with the place they were in, both physically and emotionally, that neither of them wanted to leave. But alas, the obligation of work loomed over them so they both knew that they couldn't say in that position forever.

Still, the two of them spent what little of the morning they had together, with them making breakfast together as conversation flow freely and easily. Neither of them seemed to hold any regret for the actions of last night, with Kendall even suggesting that maybe he should say round more often, the blush accompanying the statement being plentiful.

When the two of them parted ways, they both leaned in for a kiss, and it wasn't until Kendall physically tore himself away that they finally separated with the promise that James would be at the café again tonight to accompany Kendall while he worked.

James was snapped out of his small reminiscence however when he turned the corner to be greeted with a police blockade, one that seemed to surround the old cemetery where the battle between Switchblade would go down. As James approached, a uniformed officer spoke up.

"Sir, this area is off limits, I'm going to have to ask you to turn around" the man said, causing James to raise an eyebrow as he continued to approach. When James showed on clear sigh of stopping, the officer reached for the taser in holster and that caused the brunet to halt.

"Why is this off limits?" the brunet asked, knowing full well the reason but wanting to confirm it.

"The chief wants this area clear of civilians when Blizzard and Switchblade meet. He wants to prevent any civilian casualties"

"And what about everyone behind the blockade"

"There is no one behind the blockade, all the buildings have been evacuated" the officer replied, James taking another step forward causing the officer to stand up a little straighter. "Sir, I can't let you through"

"But what about my rights as a journalist?"

"I'm still not allowed to let you through sir. You'll be able to report on the fight once it's over"

That caused James to let out a sigh as he ran his hands through his hair in frustration.

"Come on, I can make it worth your while. My father is Mr Diamond. Please, just let me through" James said, resulting to his final tactic, one that he always hated to use.

Instead, the officer just shook his head once more. "Unfortunately, Mr Diamond, that makes it less likely for you to get through. The chief has also told us to try and keep you out of danger, so I'd be disregarding two orders if I let you through" the officer replied, taking another step closer to James. "Now, I'll ask you again sir, please turn around"

"Fine, fine" James replied, holding his hands up in surrender as he walked away. "Wanker"

"What was that sir?"

"Nothing" James said, shaking his head as he walked. Just as he reached the corner of the street, he looked up to see that Blizzard was approaching overhead, the masked blond looking down at James.

Like most of their encounters, their eyes met, and despite being able to make out very little, the one thing James could see was the guilt that the super hero's held in his eyes. As Blizzard shot overhead, James knew for a fact that he couldn't leave the area.

One way or another, he had to find a way into that old cemetery.

* * *

 **So yeah, I'm going to leave the next chapter there, but I'm sure you all know what next time will entail! And Kames finally did the deed, and admitted that they 'liked' each other! I wonder how their relationship is going to develop from here?**

 **I want to give a massive thank you to Guest, Winterschild11, RainbowDiamonds and Vegeta-Lover27, and I'm glad your all enjoying this story! You seemed to feel sorry for Kendall being so helpless, and that definitely showed up again in this chapter. Hopefully he'll be able to overcome that, and you also don't think it's going to take long for James to figure out that Kendall is Blizzard, which again, I have no comment on, other than that I have a plan for it 😈 And for RainbowDiamonds, I hope this makes up for the lack of Kames. Now they've had a moment together, but the real question is, was it as innocent as James thinks it is?**

 **And on that note, I'll leave you all! I will see you on Thursday for the next chapter of Rush and Response, which I promise will come this time! I'm going to start writing it tomorrow, so I will have it done for Thursday! Thank you all for bearing with me over the last couple of weeks, and I will see you soon! But until then,**

 **TTFN 😃❄**


	16. Chapter 16

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! I'm super excited to get this chapter out to you today, so let's crack right on with it, as this one is a doozy!**

* * *

As Kendall skated towards the old cemetery, his eyes met with a familiar pair, causing the blond to let out a shallow sigh. Really, he should have expected James to be here with this being a massive scoop for Dispatch Weekly, but the blond could have done without the feelings of guilt that accompanied seeing him. Guilt was an emotion that Kendall had felt plenty of over the past couple of days, starting with the bombing of the three buildings and the death of the four innocent civilians when Switchblade first arrived, right up to when Kendall woke up this morning.

Last night was something that Kendall felt quite a bit of guilt about, but it wasn't because he slept with James, it was his reason for doing so. Kendall wasn't lying when he said that he liked James, and he didn't regret anything that happened between them, but Kendall felt guilt over the fact that he did it because he thought it might be his last chance to do so.

After everything that's been happening recently, with the two supervillains roaming the city as well as Kendall's self-doubt slowly growing, the blond needed something to get his mind off of everything before it all came to a head today, something that the blond was already worried about. He shook himself out of his thoughts as he finally lost his eye contact with James, and the blond tried to refocus his efforts as he continued to skate overhead.

Still, the negative thoughts worked their way back in.

Could he really do this?

Could he actually defeat Switchblade today, after what he'd seen yesterday? It was clear that she had no limits, no boundaries as to what she would do to get what she wanted, whatever that was, so could he actually stop her?

Could he do any of this, including defending James and his family from Inferno, whenever that attack would happen next?

Could he?

Once again, Kendall tried to push the self-doubt right to the back of his mind, this time as he skated down to the ground, right in the middle of the old cemetery, where a small chapel stood. Around him, rows and rows of gravestones sat, some crumbling to show that they'd been there for years, while others seemed brand new signalling that they'd only recently been put into place.

"It's quite fitting don't you think?" A female voice spoke up, causing Kendall to spin around to the chapel to see Switchblade leaning against its peak. "That the place we're going to battle is the place where the people you can't save end up" she continued, jumping from the roof of the chapel before landing on the floor with a roll. "I mean, somewhere here, those four people who died when you didn't show up are buried in the ground, while they're being mourned by their family"

Kendall's anger boiled at her words, but the blond tried his best to contain it. "What do you want?" the blond asked, causing the woman to let out a hysterical laugh as she began to circle the blond, Kendall following her every move.

"You'd know what I want if you'd have attended my little event yesterday. But instead, you were off somewhere else, letting people die."

"I did not let them die!" Kendall shouted, but it went ignored.

"To be honest, I was surprised that you even turned up today. I was ready to follow through with what I said, and begin my rampage through the city, burning the tallest buildings and watching all those people dance in the flames, but you had to ruin my fun" She said, her tone turning into a childish sad voice as she finished. "But oh well, I'll have to do that another time"

"Not if I stopped you!"

"Ooh, you're a cocky one, especially considering your track record. Stopping misfits and drug dealers and defeating one under armed man, and now you're thinking that you're all it. Blizzard, the super-hero!" she said, waving her arms into the air as she finished the sentence. "If you were that super, then you should have been there yesterday"

"I'm starting to wish that I was, so I could have shut your mouth then instead of having to listen to you now" Kendall threatened, causing her to laugh hysterically again.

"Such bold words for such a scared little boy," She said, still circling Kendall as he followed her with his eyes. "I mean, that must be why you didn't turn up yesterday. You're just a scared little boy, scared scared scared scared scared!" She chanted, Kendall's anger building even further.

"I've got nothing to fear from you!" Kendall shouted, causing her to laugh once again.

"If you're not scared, then do something. I'm waiting for you to kick this off. You know what they say, ladies first!" She teased, and that caused something to snap in Kendall. Within seconds of her finishing her sentence, Kendall launched an ice shard in her direction, one that she quickly dodged out of the way of. "Tut tut tut, I was expecting better of you Blizzard. Then again, facing petty criminals doesn't need much discipline!" She teased once again, causing Kendall to launch another ice shard in her direction. Again, she dodged out of its way with relative ease, this time with her sticking her tongue out as she did so. "So disappointed"

"If you're so disappointed, then why don't you show me what you've got" Kendall shouted, causing a massive grin to grow on her face.

"Game on" she replied, reaching down to her thigh to grab one of the throwing knives she kept there.

Launching it at the blond, Kendall had to act fast to get out of its way, the knife only just missing Kendall's arm as the blond moved to the side. Before the blond had much time to react, another knife was flung his way, causing the blond to raise his right arm up, an ice shield forming along its length, coming down to the bottom of his abdomen. The knife lodged itself into the ice, Switchblade letting out another hysterical laugh.

"Now this is what I expected! Let's start dancing!" She shouted, reaching for one of her swords sheathed across her back. Kendall watched as she pulled the weapon from its holster, slowly as if to tease the blond as she did so.

With the sword firmly in her hand, she grinned as she slowly began to circle Kendall once again, the blond now walking opposite her. The blond launched another ice shard in her direction, one that this time, Switchblade chopped in half causing it to fall to the ground as she reached for another of her throwing knives. The blond readied himself as the knife flew towards him, Kendall moving his right arm so that the shield would cover his torso and his head.

When the blond felt the knife lodge itself into his ice shield, Kendall lowered it, only to the greeted with the sight of Switchblade charging towards him. The blond had little time to react, so in preparation, he raised the shield once again, but this time, it wasn't enough. Switchblade rammed into him, causing the blond to stumble to the ground.

In the process, his shield disappeared, causing all the knives once lodged into it to fall to the ground, their blades narrowly missing Kendall as they landed in the grass blade first. Of course, that was the least of Kendall's concerns with Switchblade now hovering over him, about to bring her sword down onto his chest.

Panicked, Kendall brought his arm up to his chest, the ice shield forming once again and taking the brunt of the impact, Switchblade's sword lodging itself into the ice. While she struggled to remove her sword from the ice, Kendall used it to his full advantage, using his legs to kick Switchblade right in her left knee.

The impact caused the woman to buckle, falling down onto one knee, and Kendall used this once again, the blond now pushing his chest up from the ground, causing the handle of the lodged sword to ram into Switchblade's forehead. The woman fell to the ground due to such action, Kendall now pushing himself up from the floor quickly, so he was back onto his feet.

Switchblade wasn't far behind him, the woman back on her feet as quickly as she fell and with a grin on her face, Kendall saw her push a small button on her gloves, the sword lodged in Kendall's shield now offering some resistance.

Within seconds, the object flew out of Kendall's shield and landed perfectly back into Switchblade's hand, the two of them circling each other as they'd done before. "I have to admit; this is quite amusing! I'm having such fun!" Switchblade said, putting on a fake British accent as she said it. "And I'm learning so much about you! Like, you tend to keep your legs undefended" she announced, swinging her sword right at Kendall's ankles.

The blond had to jump to avoid the attack, Switchblade letting out another hysterical laugh as he did so. "I'm also betting that you're imagining the four people who died when I blew up those buildings" She began, taunting Kendall once again, who launched an ice shard in her direction, one that she dodged with ease again. "Are you picturing them? Picturing their faces as the building explodes around them…although saying that, maybe you should be picturing their faces scattered all throughout the rubble, since you know, they blew up into itty bitty pieces!"

"Shut up!" Kendall shouted, launching another ice shard in her direction. This one she cut in half, before continuing.

"Is someone getting angry? I've never known you to be angry Blizzard, even when you were facing off against Pulsewave, you weren't angry" She said, her face dropping as she pouted like a child. "That means it must be me? Do I make you angry Blizzard? Or are you angry because you knew you couldn't save the people who blew up in the buildings" she mocked, using a baby voice the entire time as if to only wind Kendall up more.

"You're going to pay for their lives!" Kendall shouted, causing her to bring her free hand up to her cheek as she pretended to cry.

"That's not very friendly" she pouted, reaching down to her thigh to grab another throwing knife. Prepared for it, Kendall formed another ice shield to protect himself from the blade so as she threw the knife, Kendall knew it would only lodge itself into the shield. "You've become predictable, and that makes you easy to fight!" Switchblade announced and just as Kendall felt the throwing knife lodge itself into his shield, he saw her cyclone throwing star pass his face, pain accompanying it as the blade sliced across his right bicep.

Of course, that caused his shield to drop ever so briefly but it was enough for Switchblade who through a volley of throwing knives at him. The blond couldn't react in time, multiple blades slicing across his skin.

One hit on his cheek and a couple more hit his arm, before the blond felt something slice across the top of his left knee, causing the blond to fall onto one knee as he watched the cyclone throwing knife circle back to her. Grabbing the object, and securing it onto her back, Kendall watched a Switchblade approach. The blond tried to push himself up off the ground, but as soon as he attempted it, another throwing knife was launched at him, this one lodging itself into the blond's shoulder.

"I really was expecting so much better," Switchblade said, as she stood tall in front of the blond. "But then again, people say that you should never meet your heroes, as you're always disappointed." She continued, readying one of her swords. "And now, I'm going to watch this city burn. Unfortunately, however, you won't be around to see it" she finished, bringing her sword down across Kendall's chest from his right shoulder all the way down to his left hip.

The blond screamed in pain as the sharp object sliced through his skin, and to finish him off, Switchblade grabbed the knife lodged in his shoulder and yanked it out hard, causing the blond to fall onto the ground completely, now staring up at her.

"Oh, it looks like we have an audience!" Switchblade announced, causing Kendall to roll his head to his left side, where he saw James crouched behind a tombstone. "At least you're not going to die alone. Ta-ta!" She finished but by the time Kendall rolled his head to look up, she was gone.

It was in that moment when the blond felt his ears become blocked and his vision blurred. Feeling his body become limp, Kendall gave into the feeling, the last thing the blond remembering was his cheek hitting the ground.

* * *

James watched as Switchblade fled the scene, her hysterical cackle following as she jumped from gravestone to gravestone on her way out of the cemetery, but James had little patience for her, the brunet running up to Blizzard's body which was laid lifelessly on the floor. Blood seemed to pour out of every limb, but that didn't seem to stop James from shaking him.

"Blizzard?" the brunet questioned as he did so, hoping that Blizzard would wake up, tears now falling from his eyes as the brunet felt the blood rush from his head. "What do I do? What do I do?" James asked himself, trying his best not to let the panic settle in, despite the fact that his hands were now covered in Blizzard's blood from where he'd shaken the superhero.

The small part of his brain that wasn't freaking out finally came up with an idea, causing James to start patting all of his pockets, trying to find his phone and as soon as he felt the object, it was pulled from it's hiding place and placed onto the ground as it rung the emergency services.

"911, what's your emergency" a voice spoke from the other side of the phone and as soon as the voice had finished, Blizzard took a deep breath, before coughing up some blood.

"Oh, thank god, you're alright!" James said to Blizzard, placing his arm under the hero's neck to help prop him up slightly.

"Sir, do you need medical assistance?" the voice asked, but before James could respond Blizzard spoke up.

"No, James no emergency services." the hero said, and James could see how Blizzard's right arm was moving around to try and reach for the phone.

"Ok, ok," James said, reaching down to the phone himself to cancel the call. "It's off" James replied, Blizzard taking shallow breaths in his arms. "But you need help. You're massively injured" James explained, but just as he said that he watched as the hero's suit began to knit itself back together. Blizzard must have seen the confused look on James' face, as he began to explain, despite how out of breath he was.

"It's the nanobots in the suit lining. They'll help patch the suit back up and that'll stop me from bleeding out so soon, but I'm still going to need help"

"I just tried to phone for help"

"No, not the emergency services, I just need somewhere to hide out while my body heals itself"

"You're not going be able to heal this yourself. You're probably going to need surgery or at least stitches to close the wound"

"No hospitals," Blizzard said, trying to sit up but instead letting out a yell of pain from the sword wound in his chest. "I just need somewhere I can take it easy until I heal for myself."

"You have a slash wound, a hole in your shoulder and multiple smaller cuts, you're going to need a medical professional"

"No hospitals!" Blizzard repeated, trying to sit up once again only to fall back to the ground once again causing him to cough up some more blood. "Please James, promise me no hospitals," Blizzard said, gripping hold of James' arm with all the strength he had.

"Ok, but where then? Have you got somewhere I can take you, a base or something?" James asked, causing Blizzard to shake his head. Of course, as soon as he did that, the hero winced in pain in James' arms.

"No, nowhere" Blizzard replied, before coughing up some blood once again, only making James more sceptical of the whole thing. "I just need somewhere where I can rest…like your apartment."

"My apartment?" James questioned, causing Blizzard to nod, more blood being coughed up afterwards.

"Yeah, it's out of the way, and high up. I'll be able to keep an eye on the city if anything happens"

"How do you know where I live?" James questioned, but Blizzard ignored his question, trying to sit up once again. This time, the blond stilled screamed out in pain as he did so, with James' help he managed to get up.

"So your apartment?" The hero asked once again, coughing up blood once again.

"Ok, my apartment" James replied, hooking his arm under Blizzard's shoulder to help the blond to his feet.

As soon as the two of them tried to push up from the ground, Blizzard let out a massive scream of agony, causing the blond's knees to give out from under him. James tried his best to help keep Blizzard on his feet, but without the hero's help, James fell to his knees as well.

"Are you sure you should be moved?" James asked, but when Blizzard wrapped his arm around James' neck once again, he knew he wasn't going to get an answer to that question.

Instead, Blizzard tried to pull himself from the ground again, this time working through the pain, although he still let out a piercing shriek of agony. Once the hero was on his feet, he let out a little chuckle.

"And that was the easy part," Blizzard said, and as soon as the two of them tried to move, Blizzard's left leg gave out from under him as he screamed in pain once again. James was just about to comment on it, but before he could, Blizzard spoke up. "I just need to get to your apartment, and I'll be fine" he assured, causing James to nod as they began to hobble out of the cemetery, Blizzard wincing at every step they took.

With the amount of blood covering James' clothes and the amount of pain Blizzard was in, James was unsure that they'd even make it that far but for the sake of the hero, he was willing to try.

* * *

 **So there we have it! Blizzard fought Switchblade and lost, bless him! Of course, James was there watching the whole thing, and he's come to Blizzard's aid at the end of the chapter! I wonder what will happen next?**

 **I want to give a massive thank you to Guest, Winterschild11, RainbowDiamonds and EpicallyObsessed for reviewing the last chapter and I'm so glad that you all enjoyed it! I'm also so glad that you loved the Kames, but it's just another thing that Kendall felt guilty over, bless him, especially because he thought it might be his only chance. Still, Kames are happy, but I wonder how they will stand after the next chapter?**

 **I can't wait to hear what you guys have to say about this chapter, and I will see you on Thursday for the next chapter of Rush & Response! But until then,**

 **TTFN 😃❄**


	17. Chapter 17

**Hi Guys, and welcome back to Blizzard! Again, I'm super excited to get this chapter to you, so let's crack on shall we?**

* * *

"Come on, it's just a little further," James said, as Blizzard clutched hold of his sides in pain. The two of them were currently sneaking through the back entrance of James' building, one that James knew wasn't regularly used. He doubted that most people in the building even knew about it.

"Oh thank god" Blizzard replied, trying his best not to think of the pain, although that was definitely difficult considering the fact that it seared across his chest, arms, leg and face every time he took a step.

When the two of them finally came to a stop outside of the lift, as they waited for it to arrive, Blizzard lent against the wall, finally allowing James to make a moment to himself. "Thank you for this James, it means a lot to me," Blizzard said, as the blond tried his best to get his breath.

"Don't mention it. I mean, I couldn't have exactly left you on the floor to die"

"No, but you could have also ignored my wishes and taken me to a hospital, so thank you for that" Blizzard replied, just as the lift door dinged and opened.

"I still think we should have taken you to a hospital," James said, as he walked back over to Blizzard, and placed his arm under his shoulders, helping the hero hobble into the lift.

"Honestly, I'll be fine, I just need…"

"A place to rest" James finished his sentence for him, while also pressing the button to the 55th floor.

In the hopes that it would stop anyone else from getting in the lift, James kept his finger pressed on the button causing the lift to travel straight up to Floor 55. Whether James actually made a difference or not could be questioned, but the brunet didn't really have time to debate it when they arrived, with him helping Blizzard hobble once again, this time down the corridor to his apartment.

When they arrived at his apartment door, James rummaged around for his keys but trying to find them and keep Blizzard upright was definitely proving him with difficulty. His mind flicked back to the incident when he carried Kendall up the stairs and how he placed the blond on the floor while trying to find the keys for Kendall's apartment, and James couldn't help but think how similar that situation was to this one.

When Blizzard let out a groan of pain however, James knew that this wasn't the right time to think about the blond, because he knew he'd be there all day. Pushing Kendall out of his mind for a second, James finally found his keys, and within a matter of seconds, they were in his apartment, as James led Blizzard over to the sofa.

As soon as they were close, the hero collapsed onto it, and while James had the brief worry about the hero's blood staining the sofa, he knew that the fact that Blizzard was even bleeding was a bigger issue.

"Ok, so what now?" James asked, causing Blizzard to lift up the collar of his suit slightly to see the chest wound. He winced in pain as the suit pulled away from his skin, and again when he let his suit go.

"I'm going to need something to bandage the wound with, and some alcohol" Blizzard said, causing James to nod briefly before something worked its way into his head.

"We're going to have to take your suit off in order to bandage you back up," James said, but Blizzard ignored him as he peeked down his suit once again.

"It's pretty deep," the hero said, causing James to raise an eyebrow.

"Surely if it's a deep wound, we're going to need to stitch it up. I mean, that's what they do in all the doctor shows that I've seen" James stated, Blizzard shaking his head as James spoke.

"My body heals at a faster rate than everyone else's. If I bandage the wound, that'll be enough to keep it clean and help it recover."

"And the alcohols for cleaning it out right?"

"Yeah…let's go with that" Blizzard replied, causing James to roll his eyes as he began to search around for what Blizzard asked for.

The alcohol was pretty easy to find, with James reaching into one of his cupboards and pulling out a litre bottle of vodka, but it was something to use as a bandage that James was struggling with.

When the brunet hurt himself, which wasn't too often, he found himself just going to the hospital, so he didn't really keep a lot of medical supplies in his apartment. And the ones he did have definitely weren't sufficient to help heal something the size of a chest wound. Suddenly a light bulb went off in his mind, and the brunet found himself rushing into his bedroom.

Blizzard, or Kendall, on the other hand, was trying his best not to think about what had happened right here the night before. The last thing the blond needed was to start pitching a tent with his suit on. Not that that was going to happen however, as Kendall was into much pain to even be horny. His chest wound was definitely something to be worried about, but the blond knew that he couldn't go to the hospital with it. A wound of this proportion would definitely be investigated, and Kendall didn't need that right now.

He was snapped out of his thought process when he heard James walk back into the room, and after the brunet grabbed the bottle of vodka from the side, he made his way back over to the living room area.

"So, I've got vodka to disinfect the wound, and I don't have any bandages or anything, but I thought maybe an old bedsheet could work?" the brunet said, causing Blizzard to let out a little chuckle.

"A bed sheet?" he questioned, causing James to roll his eyes at the hero.

"Sorry, it's not often that I have a significantly wounded person in my apartment, so you'll need to excuse me for not being prepared. I swear, you superhero's are so demanding and pretentious" James replied, causing Blizzard to let out a little chuckle, one that turned into a cough.

"It'll work fine. It might need to be cut down slightly, but it'll work" Blizzard said, causing James to nod as he placed the two items down.

"I going to say again if we're going to do this, we're going to have to take your suit off. We can't clean the wound and bandage it without getting this off first." James said, causing Blizzard to shake his head.

"It's fine, I can do it by myself. If you can just…leave the room or something?" Blizzard responded, and James knew that the hero was sceptical of having his identity revealed, so he could respect his wishes. That all changed however when he watched Blizzard try to sit up again, the hero letting out another groan of pain before falling back down onto the sofa.

"You're not going to be able to do this by yourself," James stated once again, Blizzard trying to sit up again, only to let out another groan of pain. "Just let me help you"

"I can do it" Blizzard reassured, causing James to roll his eyes as he made his way back over to the blond. "James, I'm fine…I"

"You don't want your identity being revealed," James said, and the look in Blizzard's eyes confirmed that.

"You're _the_ reporter James, the one who's insistent on finding out my secret identity. If I take this suit off, and you tell the world..."

"Oh, to hell with that" James replied, shaking his head. "I'm not going to let you bleed out on my couch just because you feared that I'd reveal your secret identity." James let out a sigh. "I promise, I won't tell a soul who you are. I'll keep your secret safe"

"It's not just for my safety James. If people think you know who I am, then you could come under threat as well, and I don't want that to happen to you" Blizzard replied, causing a small smile to grow on James' face.

"I promise, I won't tell anyone, just let me help you," James said, causing Blizzard to nod. "Ok, how do I take it off?"

"You have to pull the mask off first" Blizzard replied, causing both of them to prepare themselves for what was about to come.

James was about to get the biggest break of his entire journalism career and yet, he couldn't tell a soul about it. The brunet understood the reasoning behind it, and he would keep the promise that he made, but that didn't mean he wasn't a little bit disappointed about it, however.

Kendall, on the other hand, was about to reveal the secret he'd kept for the past 8 years, and the blond was worried about how James would take it. The man in front of him was his boyfriend, one that he'd been lying to this entire time, and this moment could possibly bring an end to their entire relationship, something that Kendall hoped wouldn't be the case.

As James began to pull on the mask, Kendall closed his eyes as his heart rate sped up and once the object was fully off, he felt the brunet's grip on his suit release.

Finally opening his eyes, he saw James staring right back down at him, the brunet in a state of shell shock. The only thing Kendall could think to say was "Hi" rather sheepishly. Of course, as soon as he said that, James' whole persona changed.

"Oh, you have got to be shitting me" the brunet began, taking a step back from the couch that Blizzard…that Kendall was laid on, the blond sheepishly looking up at him. "You're…it's…no no no no no, this can't be real"

"James…"

"No, shush!" James said, pointing his finger at the blond before continuing. "This, it, wow I mean, just wow, you're Blizzard, or Blizzard is you?"

That's when James broke down laughing, it beginning with a small chuckle before it descended into a full belly laugh.

"No, now this is fucking hilarious! This is actually brilliant! I should have seen this coming; I really should have. I mean, there I was, talking to you about how I'm going to find out who Blizzard is, and all this fucking time, you were right there. Oh, that's too good to be true!"

"James, as much as I appreciate that this is a big thing, maybe you can have your psychotic break after you help patch me up," Kendall said, causing James' laughing to slow slightly, as the brunet began to take deep breaths.

"Ok, ok, you're right," James replied, walking back over to the sofa. Of course, none of this had truly sunken in for the brunet, but he knew that Blizzard…Kendall…Blizzard…Kendall was right, and he needed to be looked after first.

As James continued to take off the blond's suit, he made sure that Kendall wasn't in any more pain as he did so. Pulling the suit off of the blond's chest was definitely the worst bit for both of them, as James hated seeing Kendall in so much pain, while you know, Kendall was the actually feeling the pain. James didn't know whether to just rip it off like a band-aid, or take it slowly, so he found a place in the middle. To be honest, Kendall probably would have hated any option. As soon as the suit got to Kendall's hips, however, James couldn't help but start laughing again.

"At least you don't have to worry about me seeing you naked for the first time," the brunet said, his laughter increasing, as Kendall just rolled his eyes at the statement.

When the suit was finally off, James threw it aside, finally reviewing all of Kendall's injuries once again. The cut above his knee and on his arm had already healed, something that James was completely taken aback up, and the wound where the knife was lodged into his shoulder was slowly healing up.

The chest wound was really the only wound that remained, but James saw that even that wasn't as bad as it was in the cemetery. Of course, looking at Kendall's wounds also provided James with another chance to see Kendall naked but this time that view was… James couldn't quite put his finger on what was different about it.

"Ok, so what now?"

"I need you to pour the vodka into the wound, to disinfect it" Kendall replied, causing James to nod as he grabbed the bottle and unscrewed the lid. As soon as that was done, James took a swig of it, hoping to calm his nerves slightly.

"Pass that here," Kendall said, causing James to hand him the bottle. As difficult as it was for the blond, with him being laid down, Kendall still took a big swig from the bottle before he handed it back to James. "Fuck this is gonna hurt"

"How much do I pour?" James asked, causing Kendall to shrug.

"Not a clue, just enough until you think it's clean" Kendall replied, causing James to nod.

With a deep breath, both from James and Kendall, James began to pour the vodka onto the wound, causing Kendall to scream out in pain as he gripped hold of the sofa.

As soon as he screamed, James stopped pouring, but Kendall shook his head. "No, continue, I'm alright."

"Kendall, you're screaming in pain"

"That means it's working." The blond replied, but James still looked hesitant. "James, honestly, I'm fine. It hurts at the moment, but it's gonna help in the long run" the blond said, and James could see the sincerity in his eyes.

With one final nod, James continued to pour the bottle, as Kendall gritted his teeth in pain. It was only about 10 seconds after that when James finally stopped, having deemed it enough vodka, and Kendall could definitely agree.

Grabbing the bedsheet, James helped lift Kendall up off the sofa slightly while he put the sheet around his back, and despite his experience, James tried his best to bandage Kendall's chest, wrapping his bedsheet around the blond about four times before he finally secured it. Kendall had to grin and bear it, the blond trying his best not to show how much pain he was in, but it was safe to say that he was relieved when James had finally finished.

With the bandage around his chest, James tried his best to get Kendall comfortable, placing a pillow under his head as well as deciding to get the blond a blanket in case he got cold.

When James got back to the living room, however, he was greeted with the sight of Kendall asleep on the sofa as well as the Blizzard costume thrown over the arm of the couch at the bottom of Kendall's feet. That caused James to let out a sigh as he dropped onto his armchair.

The brunet definitely had a lot of thinking to do, and he didn't even know where to start with it.

* * *

When the blond woke up later that day, he wasn't quite sure how long he had slept for, but the glow from the city's lights against the darkness suggested that it was for the better half of the afternoon. The blond's first instinct was to try and sit up, so when the blond attempted it, he felt a small sharp pain across his chest.

It wasn't as bad as the pain he was feeling before however, so the blond took that as a positive sign.

As the blond shuffled back, so he could lean against the arm of the sofa, he glanced around the room and was greeted with the sight of James sitting on the armchair, wine glass in hand as he stared out onto the city. Unsure of what to say, the blond let out a sigh as he cast his eyes down to the floor.

"It all makes sense now" James spoke, finally breaking the silence between them before he took a sip of his wine.

"James" Kendall tried to begin, but James didn't listen, as he continued to speak.

"I mean, it's why you're always cold when I touch you, it's why you were so tired that week after Pulsewave gave the threat about the rising storm, and it was why you were always so smug when I talked about Blizzard. God, I can't believe I didn't see it sooner, I was so stupid!"

"James, no, you weren't" Kendall interrupted, but James just shook his head.

"I was, I mean, it makes sense as to why you were so insistent on protecting me and my dad, and why you couldn't respond when Switchblade first attacked! I even complained to you about Blizzard not showing up, but you were stood right next to me the entire time! I was probably the safest person there, but I complained to _you_ about how _you_ weren't there! God, how could I have been such a fool!" James stated, before downing all of the wine in his glass.

"James, stop it, you weren't a fool!" Kendall repeated again, shuffling up on the sofa again to try and make his point stronger. "There was no way you could have known. I mean, I kept that secret for 8 years, so there's no way you could have figured it out in a couple of months." Kendall said, before taking a deep breath. "I just sorry that I lied to you about it all. I meant what I said earlier when I said that I wanted to protect you, and I thought the best way to do that was to not tell you. I mean, if I did, that would have put you in more danger and…"

That's when Kendall noticed that James to chuckling to himself in the armchair, the brunet finally looking over to him for the first time since Kendall had woken up. "I'm not mad at you Kendall" James began, causing Kendall to raise an eyebrow at him.

"You're not?"

"No, of course I'm not. I mean, yes, it's a massive shock finding out that my boyfriend is a superhero and that he risks his life every single day to try and make the better place"

"Breathe James, breathe" Kendall interrupted, noticing how James was quickly starting to hyperventilate. When the brunet had calmed down a little bit, he continued.

"But, I've seen the superhero movies, and I even read some of the comics when I was a kid. I know why you didn't tell me, and I understand"

"Wow, this is not turning out how I expected," Kendall said, causing James to let out another little chuckle as he got up from the armchair and made his way to the end of the sofa that Kendall was sat on.

Placing his arm onto Kendall's leg as he sat down, James spoke up again. "I guess, the thing that I just don't understand is how this happened. I mean, how did you become Blizzard?" he asked, causing Kendall to let out a little chuckle.

"Now, that's a long story," the blond said, causing James to nod.

"Well, let me grab another bottle of wine and another glass" James replied, patting Kendall's leg gently before he stood up and made his way over to the kitchen.

Deep down inside, James knew that this was going to be one hell of a story.

* * *

 **So there we have it! James found out Kendall's secret, and he was actually pretty cool about the whole thing! Next time, we will be getting Kendall's backstory, which I have to admit, I'm super excited to write!**

 **I want to give a massive thank you to Guest, Winterschild11, RainbowDiamonds, Vegeta-Lover27 and EpicallyObsessed for reviewing the last chapter, and I'm so glad you liked it! You're right, Switchblade's definitely a piece of work and it's safe to say that we haven't seen the last of her. You were also curious to see what would happen between James and Kendall, so I hope you all enjoyed this! I thought it was about time that Kendall's secret came out to at least James, but trust me when I say this story is only just starting! I've still got so much planned for it!**

 **Anyway, I hope you all have a good week, and I will see you on Thursday for the next chapter of Rush & Response! But until then,**

 **TTFN 😃❄**


	18. Chapter 18

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! So, I'm back now and that means that uploads will continue as usual! As for now, let's crack on with Kendall's story!**

* * *

As James placed the two wine glasses down on the table and unscrewed the lid, Kendall found himself becoming very nervous about what was about to happen. He'd never told his story to anyone, and while he knew that James was the perfect first person to tell it to, he couldn't help but be worried about divulging a lot of personal information.

Noticing that the wine glass was filled, the blond reached out for it and took a massive gulp with practically half of the disappearing. When Kendall finally pulled the glass away from his mouth, he felt eyes on him, causing him to glance over at James, who had his eyebrow raised.

"You okay?" the brunet asked, causing Kendall to let out a sigh as he glanced down at the ground briefly before looking back up at James.

"Yeah, I'm fine. It's just…I've never told anyone about this, so I'm just a little nervous" the blond replied, causing James to flash him a small smile as he sat next to him, placing his hand into Kendall's knee.

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. I understand that it's pretty personal" James replied, and that caused Kendall to relax slightly, as a small smile grew on his own face at how generous the brunet was being.

"Thank you, but I think it's about time that I finally told someone" Kendall replied, causing James to nod as he squeezed the blond's knee.

"Alright, as long as you're sure," James replied, causing Kendall to nod as he took another sip of his wine.

Taking a deep breath, and placing the glass onto the table, Kendall began. "I suppose it all started when I was about 8-"

* * *

" _Go on, go outside you little shit!" Miss Blanchard yelled as she threw Kendall out of the door from his ear._

 _"I'm sorry!" The blond 8-year-old cried, now stood outside in one of Minnesota's coldest winters with only a long sleeve t-shirt and a pair of jeans which were too small for him._

 _"You need to be taught a lesson. Frankly, you should be grateful that I'm not throwing you out completely, stealing from the kitchen is deplorable"_

 _"But I didn't steal anything!" the blond cried back, already feeling the tears falling from his eyes freezing to his face._

 _"Then why did we find a stash of chocolate bars stuffed in your pillowcase?"_

 _"I don't know!" Kendall cried back, causing the woman to roll her eyes at him._

 _"Then, why don't you think about it for a few hours" she replied, before slamming the orphanage door shut, locking Kendall outside in the freezing temperatures as he cried._

 _The blond was being honest, he truly didn't know why there were chocolate bars stuffed into his pillowcase but watching the faces of the fellow orphans in the orphanage, he was starting to think of some ideas._

 _At first, the blond found himself sitting on the steps which lead up to the front door, doing nothing but huddling into a ball as he cried over what had transpired but that only lasted about 10 minutes before the cold became too much for him. It was easily one of the coldest winters that Kendall has experienced, with temperatures being as low as -25 degrees C, and the gusting winds also didn't help this. With very little shelter protecting him from the elements on the stairs, the blond knew that in order to keep warm, he just needed to keep moving. Well, a coat and some better trousers would have also done the job but considering that he couldn't get back into the orphanage, he knew that he'd have to try his best._

 _Arms wrapped around himself, the blond began to walk in no particular direction, trying his best to keep close to the orphanage. Still, the blond couldn't help but wander into the forest a little, hoping that the trees would shelter him slightly from the frosty winds that were constantly blowing at him. All while doing so, the blond couldn't help but think about the situation he was in, with him trying to think about who would do this to him._

 _He didn't think that anyone in the orphanage hated him, considering he was a pretty quiet kid that kept to himself most of the time, reading whatever books that the orphanage had, so maybe they were just playing a prank on him, albeit a pretty mean one at that._

 _Another strong wind worked its way through the trees, causing the blond to shiver dramatically as he tried to duck behind a tree for cover. Still, the snow he was trudging through was making his shoes and the top of his ankle wet, where his jeans didn't quite reach, and the small droplets of water that were dropping from the trees were causing his hair to get wet as well._

 _The blond knew that he just needed to push through it, and try not to let it stop him. Once he stopped, he got cold and once he got cold, he was pretty much a goner, or at least that's what the nuns in the orphanage had drilled into him growing up. With his mind preoccupied with trying to stay warm, he continued to let his feet carry him in whatever direction they were previously heading in, one that was leading him deeper and deeper into the forest, further and further away from the orphanage._

 _About 10 minutes passed before Kendall finally lifted his eyes up from the ground, and in doing so, the 8-year-old finally realised that he was lost. The winds were constantly turning the snow over, which made it impossible for him to just follow his footprints back home, and in a moment of panic, Kendall found himself spinning in a circle, trying to take in his surroundings, meaning that he now had no bearing as to what way the orphanage was either._

 _T_ _he blond was surrounded by trees, all of which seemed to reach for metres into the air around him, and the blond wasn't very athletic, so he knew that he wasn't going to be able to climb one to try and gain some sort of aerial advantage. What hadn't helped either, was that the blond was now stationary as well, meaning that the cold was getting to him a lot quicker._

 _In an effort to keep warm, Kendall picked a direction and just began to walk in it, hoping that soon he'd find someone or somewhere that could help him._

 _What the blond didn't know however was that he'd picked the wrong direction, and was instead heading deeper into the woods._

* * *

"My god, that must have been awful, I can't believe they locked you out like that!" James exclaimed before taking a sip of his drink with a frown on his face as he thought about what Kendall had gone through. It was safe to say that he'd never had an experience even close to that in his life…well, one time he went camping, but the brunet knew that it was nothing compared to what Kendall had endured.

"That wasn't even the worst of some of the stuff they did. They'd also refuse to feed us for a couple of days or do the opposite of what they did to me in the summer. They'd lock us in the old greenhouse when it was boiling out" Kendall replied, letting out a humourless chuckle before taking a sip of his drink.

"That's vile. Surely this place can't still be going now, can it? Someone must have reported it after they left"

"Someone did" Kendall replied, making it obvious that he was talking about himself. "I remember whilst we were there that they used to make threats against us, saying that if we ever told anyone about what it was like, they'd do unspeakable things to us, and besides, when the inspectors come round, the place was always immaculate, so no one would believe us anyway"

"So what did you do?" James asked, causing a small smug smile to grow on Kendall's face.

"Let's just say that rescuing those kids was one of the last things that Blizzard ever did before he moved to Spirit City" Kendall replied, before taking another sip of his drink. "But anyway, I'm getting sidetracked"

"Right sorry," James said, causing Kendall to flash him a small smile as he shuffled slightly closer to the brunet. He still felt a small pain as he did so, but it wasn't as intense as the ones before, so he worked through it, resting his head onto James' shoulder.

"So, I remember I had probably been walking for about half an hour by this point-"

* * *

 _Kendall shivered once again as another gust of wind blew across him, causing the blond to bring his arms tighter across his chest as he tried to remain warm, not that it was doing much to help. His whole body was fully shaking by this point, his teeth chattering against each other as the blond tried to push through it and make his way back to the orphanage, despite the fact that he was travelling in the wrong direction._

 _As the blond tried his best to climb over fallen trees and duck under branches, he spotted an opening in the distance, causing his heart to race in his chest at the thought that he'd finally found what he was looking for. With all of the effort he could muster, Kendall found himself shuffling through the snow to the opening, his hopes high that he'd finally found his way back._

 _Of course, his optimism was also his downfall, as the blond didn't take any care as he ran onto the open space covered in snow, and it was only when he felt the ground buckle behind him that he finally considered what he'd come across, but it was too late. As the ground collapsed from behind him, Kendall was plunged into ice cold water, and within a matter of seconds, the blond realised that it was a frozen over lake._

 _Panicked, the blond began to move frantically in the hopes that his arm movements would help him swim, but without being taught as a kid, the blond only ended up wasting his breath quicker causing him to begin inevitably breathing the ice cold water, bringing it into his lungs. The blond was powerless to stop it, and every frantic movement he made to try and save himself only caused him to swallow more water as he sunk further and further down into the lake. Before long, his vision began to blur, and whether it was due to the depth, or the fact that he was blacking out, everyone was submerged into darkness._

 _The next thing Kendall remembered was waking up to find a paramedic hovering over him while the blond felt an overwhelming urge to throw up. Indulging it, Kendall began to throw up loads of water from the lake, his body spasming as about 5 people watched, Kendall noticing how Miss Blanchard was stood there with her hands over her mouth. As soon as Kendall stopped choking up water, and took his first deep breath in what felt years, the woman came running up to him and wrapped her arms and a blanket around him._

 _"Oh Kendall, thank god we found you, I was so worried!" the woman exclaimed, causing a puzzled look to grow on the blond's face._

 _"Son, are you alright?" One of the paramedics asks, causing Kendall to nod as he pulled the blanket tighter around him, trying his best to get warm. "Can you tell us how this happened?" the same paramedic asked, but just as Kendall went to speak, Miss Blanchard spoke up._

 _"We were out for a walk, and when I looked away for a brief second, Kendall had wondered off. I was so worried about him, and when I heard the massive crash of the ice breaking, I knew something was wrong"_

 _"I was asking him, ma'am," the paramedic said, causing Miss Blanchard to go quiet with a scowl on her face._

 _"Is that what happened? You were out for a walk in just a long sleeve t-shirt and some jeans and you wandered off?" he asked, causing Kendall to look up at him, before briefly glancing over at Miss Blanchard. For a brief second, Kendall thought that he finally had his shot at freedom but the look on her face was enough to crush all of his aspirations in seconds, so instead the blond found himself nodding._

 _"Yeah, that's what happened" Kendall replied, causing the paramedic to let out a grunt of disbelief. Still, he didn't question it as he spoke up again._

 _"Well, we're going to take you into the hospital. You're hypothermic so we want to make sure that you recover from that, and you may still have some liquid in your lungs, so I want you to have an x-ray just so we can make certain if you do or not. Is that ok?" the paramedic asked, causing Kendall to nod as he was lifted to his feet and placed into the back of an ambulance with Miss Blanchard accompanying him._

 _Nothing was said on the drive there, but the look she was giving him was enough to explain exactly how she felt about this whole situation._

 _When they arrived at the hospital, everything seemed to fly by for Kendall. One minute, the blond was having all of his wet clothes removed and being thrown under blankets in order to try and get his body temperature up, while also being hooked up to IV's, and the next, he was being rushed through the hospital onto an x-ray table, where they were taking all sorts of readings and recordings in order to see if there was any more liquid left in his lungs._

 _The whole process must have lasted at least hours, and the whole time after the x-ray, Kendall just felt…cold. He felt cold, and no amount of blankets or warm drinks could help him._

 _At the time, everyone thought it was just the hypothermia he was suffering from, so they all paid no mind to it, to the most important thing that was happening in Kendall's body._

* * *

"So is that how you got your powers? Your body adapted to the hypothermia?" James asked as Kendall finished off the drink of his wine.

"Not quite" Kendall replied, causing James to raise an eyebrow at him as the blond poured himself a second glass. "It was years later when I first started to get my powers, and I was curious as to how they were forming, so I googled the lake that I fell into. Turns out the lake that I fell into is close to an old nuclear waste dumping site, and over time, the radioactive particles had seemed into the stagnant water supply. Due to its size, the particle density of the radiation was low but when I started to swallow the water, it turns out that I was taking in quite a fair amount of radioactive particles" The blond began, James' eyes slowly widening at the story as he stared intently at Kendall. "From what I could tell, the radioactive particles that I had swallowed were actually pretty harmless at the time but somehow, some of the water that was in my lungs started to get into my blood supply, transferring particles with it. When we arrived at the hospital, and they took me for an x-ray, the radiation from that seemed to jumpstart the radioactive particles that were in my bloodstream, and they somehow began to slowly fuse the icy water to my red blood cells."

"My god" James exclaimed, his eyes and mouth wide as he stared at Kendall in awe. "That's…that's…my god" James continued, now leaning back into the sofa as he took another sip of his drink. "And that's how your powers formed?"

"Uh huh" Kendall replied, now taking his own sip. "As I said, the hospital found nothing at the time so no one knew, and it took years for them to develop, but yeah, I think that's how it happened"

"That's pretty intense" James stated, causing Kendall to let out a humourless chuckle. "I just can't believe that you went through all of that at the age of 8. That's…I just can't imagine how hard it must have been for you to go through all of that, and with no one to look out for you as well. You're so strong Kendall" James continued, causing the blond to blush.

"Thanks" was the only thing the blond could think to reply with, still not comfortable with receiving compliments from the brunet.

"So, if I may ask, when did you start getting your powers? And did it happen all at once or was it like over time?" James asked before a small blush grew on his face. "Sorry, I'm being overzealous"

"No, it's fine," Kendall replied, taking another sip of his drink. "It's just…this is where it gets personal and hard for me to talk about"

"Then you don't have to talk about it" James soothed, placing his hand onto Kendall's knee once again as a sign of support. "You only have to tell me what you're comfortable with telling me"

"I feel comfortable telling you anything" Kendall replied, causing a small smile to grow on James' face as Kendall rested his head on James' shoulder again.

Taking another sip of his wine, Kendall readied himself for the next part of his story.

* * *

 **So there we have it, the beginning of Kendall's story of how his powers formed. The next chapter will be a continuation of this, with him tell us about how he first discovered his powers! But anyway, I hope you all enjoyed!**

 **I want to say a massive thank you to Winterschild11, Guest, Vegeta-Lover27, RainbowDiamonds and EpicallyObsessed for reviewing the last chapter and I'm so glad that you liked it! You all seemed to love the reveal, which I'm so happy about because I thought it would be perfect and I'm also glad that you loved James' reaction to it! But like I said, we still have a long way to go!**

 **I will see you all on Thursday for the next chapter of Rush and Response, and I hope you've all had a good week and will have a good week! Ireland was fun, and definitely a welcome break from all of the usual lectures! But anyway, I'm getting sidetracked, so I will see you on Thursday! But until then,**

 **TTFN 😃❄**


	19. Chapter 19

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! So, this is a continuation of the last chapter and I hope you all enjoy, so let's crack on shall we?**

* * *

"So, as I said, the hospital found nothing at the time, but as the years went by, things started to happen. My body temperature was slowly dropping as the years went on, but I never really noticed that I just thought that I was getting used to being in the cold since the orphanage rarely had the heating on, and I also never got sick."

"Not once?" James asked, causing Kendall to shake his head.

"Since that day, I've never been sick, not even with a cold. Of course, at the time, I never really thought about it, I just thought that I was lucky enough to not catch anything from anyone"

"So when was the big moment?"

"My fourteenth birthday" the blond replied, letting out a humourless chuckle before taking a sip of his wine.

Seeing that this was about to get difficult for Kendall, James shuffled the two of them so that Kendall was properly laying against him, as they snuggled on the sofa.

"I remember it so clearly. It was the afternoon of my birthday, and I was so excited because it had fallen on a weekend that year. All I wanted to do was go out and see the few friends I'd made at school, but Miss Blanchard-"

* * *

" _No, you can't go out," Miss Blanchard said, causing Kendall's once joyous face to drop._

 _"Why not?" Kendall asked, trying his best not to get angry immediately. Of course, that's difficult for a 14-year-old boy who's currently going through puberty and has a crush on one of his friends._

 _"Because you have schoolwork and chores to do"_

 _"But I've done everything! I did all my chores this morning and I finished all my schoolwork last night! Can I go out now?" Kendall asked again, causing Miss Blanchard to shake her head._

 _"If you've done all your chores so quickly, that means that they weren't completed properly. Do them all again!"_

 _"That's so unfair!" Kendall huffed, dropping his arms by his side in frustration. "I just want to see my friends!"_

 _"And I'm telling you that you can't, you little brat! Now, go do your chores again!" Miss Blanchard shouted, but Kendall held his ground instead of listening to the now agitated woman. Noticing that Kendall wasn't listening, but instead being defiant, Miss Blanchard's anger rose tenfold, with the woman now lifting her hand into the air. "You little shit!" She yelled, bringing her hand down in full force._

 _Luckily, Kendall saw this coming giving the blond a chance to dodge out of the way of it. Scared as to what was going to come next, Kendall just ran from the woman, ignoring her as she shouted after him. Without a second thought, Kendall found himself running out of the front door of the orphanage and into the woods he'd stumbled through as a child._

 _Over the years, Kendall had become very familiar with the woods, the blond often using them as an escape from his life, and the depression that accompanied him, but today both things seemed to linger over the blond as he walked, making his current situation even worse than it was._

 _"Stupid bitch, I just wanted to see my friends"_

 _'My friends don't care if they see me today. They're just token friends, they don't actually care about me. They probably don't even know it's my birthday' His brain filled in, and while the blond would normally try to ignore those types of thoughts, especially due to their frequency, today the blond couldn't seem to shake them. 'No one cares about me, or that it's my birthday. I'm not special, I'm nothing, so why should it matter if I don't get what you want. If anything, my friends are probably grateful of the fact that they don't have to see me today' His brain continued, the blond believing everything he was thinking as he made his way to the lake._

 _For some reason, the blond felt drawn to the location, almost like he was meant to be there, so with the very little strength he could be bothered to muster, he made his way there._

 _'But what's the point of doing that. What's the point of doing anything? It's not going to matter, nothing I do is going to matter, the world would probably be better off without me in it anyway. I might as well just give up Kendall. Just give up'_

* * *

"Oh god, that must have been awful," James said, running his hands through Kendall's hair to try and sooth the blond. "I hope you don't feel like that now. You're so amazing Kendall, I hope you know that"

"Thank you" the blond blushed at James' words.

"It was a dark time for me, and I was pretty much alone for most of it. Miss Blanchard would hardly ever let us out after school and on the weekends, and even though I had friends during school, I never thought that they were actually my friends, I just thought they were being nice to me for the sake of it. I was trapped in my mind, and I thought there was nothing that could help me"

"So, what happened?" James asked, causing Kendall to let out a sigh, taking another sip of his drink before he spoke up again.

"So, when I finally got to the lake, I remember being in a really bad place-"

* * *

' _Honestly, no one probably cares that I'm out here. The sisters are probably just gonna lock the doors like they did last time since they don't care that I'm not there, and my friends don't even care about me, so it doesn't matter to them at all. I'm all alone out here, just like I deserve to be, and no one will care if anything happens to me' Kendall's brain continued to berate, this time has the blond dropped to the floor, with his knees against his chest, as he sat there looking out over the lake._

 _'It wouldn't matter if I just walked into it, and disappeared. No one would care, and the sisters would probably get a massive bonus check. I'm probably better off to them dead. They'd get a nice bonus check, and it would be one less mouth to feed. I'm probably better off to everyone dead' Kendall's brain began, this time as tears fell from his eyes, with him believing everything that he was thinking._

 _'Everyone hates me; no one actually cares about me. Those kids that are bullying me are right, I'm just a worthless fag, that no one loves. And I deserved to be beaten up for telling Zac. I shouldn't have told anyone.'_

 _As these thoughts were circling through Kendall's head, the blond couldn't do anything to stop them. Instead, he could only believe what his brain was telling him as he glanced out onto the lake._

 _'I should just do it. Just walk into the lake and finish it all. No one cares, so what's the point in living anyway. I'm just a burden to everyone, and by doing this, I'll just be helping everyone else out'_

 _As the blond wiped the tears from his eyes, he had officially hit his lowest point, and nothing could have been said or done to help him in that moment._ _Kendall was completely powerless against the thoughts that poisoned his mind, and as the blond found himself rising from the floor, his mind kicked in once again._

 _'The sisters probably care more about the clothes on my back than me, and if they got wet, I'd even be a failure in death' His brain said, causing Kendall to wipe the tears from his eyes once again, this time as he began to strip down to his boxers, believing everything that he was thinking._

 _With his clothes in a pile, Kendall looked around one last time as he took everything in. The woods were filled with noise, yet not one of them was directed at him, and every sight he gazed upon only seemed to make him feel worse._

 _With one last deep breath, Kendall took his first step towards the lake. Once the first one was taken, the rest seemed to follow easily as Kendall slowly made his way towards what the blond planned to be his demise._

* * *

Kendall didn't even realise he was crying until he felt James wipe a tear from his cheek. This time, however, James said nothing as he tried to take in everything that Kendall had said. Nothing in James' life could compare to what Kendall had told him, and the brunet had no way of knowing what the blond must have been feeling in that moment in time.

Depression was a terrible thing, James knew that for sure, but he never knew how badly it could affect someone, especially someone who was now as strong as Kendall is. It definitely made James reflect back on his own life, with the brunet realising how lucky he'd had it over the years. As James ran his hands through Kendall's hair, he finally found the right words to say.

"You're so strong, and you matter Kendall, you matter so much" James began, causing the blond to flash him a small smile as he pushed himself off of James for a brief second to give him a kiss. "I mean, I can't even begin to imagine what you must have been going through, and how awful it must have been for you. No one should have to go through that, let alone you"

"James, hey, it's ok" Kendall tried to interrupt, wiping the tears falling from James' eyes, but the brunet just shook his head.

"No, it's not ok. No one should ever be made to feel like you did. You matter so much Kendall, you matter to me so much, and I can't believe you had to go through all of that alone"

"Hey, I'm ok now, I'm ok," Kendall said once again, trying to sooth James as much as he could, tears pouring from both of their eyes.

"I'm always here for you, you know that right. If you ever think like that again, then come and talk to me right away. Because you are the best person I know, and you should never feel like that ever" James replied, grabbing Kendall's hand and giving it a squeeze to show that he was there for Kendall, the two of them now descending into silence as the last of the tears fell. As they wiped the last of the tears from their eyes, Kendall finally spoke up again.

"Thank you, James. I'm doing a lot better now, but as I said, it was a dark period in my life, when I didn't think that things were going to get better"

"Well, if you ever feel like that again, please let me know and I'll be right there for you. You are valued so much Kendall, and you matter so much" James repeated, causing a blush to grow on Kendall's cheeks as he reached over to kiss James on his.

"Thank you, James" Kendall repeated, causing a small sad smile to grow on James' face while Kendall took a deep breath. "So anyway, as I said, I started to walk towards the lake and –"

* * *

 _As Kendall began to walk towards the lake, the blond found it easier to close his eyes than to watch what he assumed was about to happen. The minutes seemed to slow massively, Kendall highly aware of what was going on around him and as the blond felt his toes hit the front of the water, Kendall took a deep breath, the last he assumed he'd ever take._

 _Another step was taken, and this time Kendall felt the cold surround it, the blond now assuming that he was slowly sinking further and further into the water as he walked. With each step, the cold surrounded his feet but it never seemed to climb higher than that, causing Kendall to finally open his eyes slowly, only for them to widen immediately at what they saw._

 _The blond was thrown into a state of shock as he gazed down at his feet, only to notice that the water around them had frozen into ice, as had the path that he'd just walked down. The blond was so panicked as to what had happened, that out of frustration, he found himself throwing his arms down towards the ground, causing two massive shards of ice to form from his hands and lodge themselves into the ice formed around him._

 _Startled once again, Kendall found himself falling back into the water, but once he'd hit it, the blond released that it had turned into ice once again. Kendall scrambled back further, watching as the water behind him turned into ice with every movement that he took, causing the blond to freak out further, as he rushed back to the shore._

 _As soon as the blond was on solid ground, he fell to his knees with shock, the blond taking heavy, deep breaths before he looked back at what had happened. About a third of the lake was now covered in ice, all of which present were Kendall previously was, and that caused the blond's panic to grow further. In a split second decision, Kendall found himself throwing all of his clothes on before he ran from the lake and back towards the orphanage._

 _However, every step he took left a small bit of frost on the ground, and every tree that he touched for support was left with a small patch of ice where his hand had been resting, and the two things combined only seemed to freak Kendall out more. When the blond finally reached the orphanage, he didn't even think twice about entering._

 _Instead, he just ran through the front doors, which were surprisingly unlocked, and straight to the room that he shared, the blond's only hope being to cover himself in his duvet and wait for this horrible day to end. Things only seemed to be getting worse for the blond, and while he hoped a new day would rid some of them, a small part of Kendall knew that this was only the beginning._

 _That fear was reinforced the next day when Kendall was getting ready. As the blond climbed into the shower, he hoped to wash away the memories of yesterday, to try and forget the events that transpired but as the water began to fall from the showerhead, the task was seemingly impossible. The blond felt like he was being pelted by the shower instead of cleansed, and when he opened his eyes, he was greeted with the sight of small ice pellets falling from the showerhead and bouncing off of his body._

 _Stunned once again, Kendall found himself stumbling backwards until he felt the wall behind him when he could finally catch his breath. The blond closed his eyes once again, hoping that if he couldn't see what was going on, then it wouldn't actually be happening, but the pelt from the ice pellets constantly reminded him that it was._

 _As they bounced off of him, they hit the floor, which quickly started to become icy and slippery, causing Kendall's feet to start to slide out from under him. The blond tried his best to brace himself on the walls, but one wrong step was enough for him to go, this time as he reached for the shower controls. As the blond finally managed to turn the shower off, his feet slid out from under him causing him to hit his head on said controls. The last thing the blond remember was the sound his head made as it connected to the metal knob._

 _When the blond finally came to, it took him a few seconds to remember what had transpired, but as soon as it hit him, Kendall couldn't help but scramble to his feet in fear. In doing so, however, the blond noticed nothing surrounding him on the floor. No small ice pellets, and weirdly no blood which he'd expected. Tentatively, Kendall lifted his hand to his head, where he presumed the cut would be, but upon touching it, he felt nothing._

 _No cut, no raised lump and, most worryingly, no pain. The blond panicked, as usual, and began to press everywhere on his face, in the hopes that a cut had actually formed somewhere, so that he could see that he was still normal and that none of this was actually happening, but when he found nothing, Kendall couldn't help but slide down to his feet again, huddled in a corner as he cried._

* * *

"I was so terrified. I didn't know what was happening to me, and I knew for a fact that I couldn't talk to anyone about it. I just didn't know what to do"

"So, what did you do?" James asked, causing Kendall to shuffle slightly.

"I tried to forget about what was happening. I tried to block it all out, and just ignore everything that was going on around me. I tried my best to avoid water entirely since that seemed to be the main cause of my problems, but of course, that was difficult when I had to try and drink, but I did my best. God, I must have done all of that for about a week, maybe two, but in the end, it all became too much" Kendall replied, grabbing his drink and taking a sip. "But that's a story for another day" he finished, letting out a sigh.

"Wow, that was some story. I…thank you for sharing it with me. I'm glad you felt comfortable enough to do so" James replied, causing a small smile to grow on Kendall's face. "How's your chest doing?" James asked, causing Kendall to roll his shoulders as he began to flex his chest.

"Yeah, it's feeling a lot better now" Kendall replied, wincing slightly at the small bout of pain he felt.

"Well, I'd recommend that you take it easy for a few days. You're going to need time to rest…"

"James" Kendall interrupted, his eyebrow raised at the brunet. "You know that I can't do that. Switchblade is still out there, and I have no clue what she's going to do next, and then there's Inferno, who hasn't made a single bit of noise since the incident at the research labs. That means that he must be planning something big, and I have to be there to stop him"

"Ok, but just promise me that you'll try to be more careful. I can't keep nursing you back to health, and one time, you might not be so lucky, and I don't want to lose you Kendall" James replied, causing Kendall to lean up and give James a kiss on his lips.

"I promise," Kendall said, causing James to smile back down at him.

"I have one more promise for you to make as well" the brunet began, causing Kendall to raise an eyebrow at him. "Promise you'll spend the night here before you rush off and do your superhero thing tomorrow"

"I promise" Kendall replied once again, the smile on James' face growing tenfold at the news.

James knew that probably nothing was going to happen between him and Kendall tonight, but just the reassure that Kendall was going to be there with him was enough for James to relax slightly.

Whatever was going to happen, it was all in the future, and right now, James just wanted to focus on what he had in front of him.

* * *

 **So there we have it! That's how Kendall's powers started to manifest themselves, and it was definitely a difficult story to tell. James, of course, was massively supportive about the whole thing, and as Kendall said himself, there are a lot more stories to tell.**

 **I want to give a massive thank you to Winterschild11, Guest, RainbowDiamonds and EpicallyObsessed for reviewing the last chapter and I'm so glad that you...appreciated the last chapter. I don't know if enjoyed would be the right word to use but you all seemed to like learning more about Kendall's backstory. As I said, we still have some more of that to go, but I'll leave that for a later date to try and break up the story a little bit! Anyway, I hope you all appreciated this chapter as well, and Kendall has definitely had some difficult times in his past that he's managed to work through.**

 **I will see you all on Thursday for the next chapter of Rush and Response, and I hope you all have a great week! But until then,**

 **TTFN 😃❄**


	20. Chapter 20

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! I'm excited to get this chapter to you, so let's crack on shall we?**

* * *

" _Seven people were injured, three critically, during this morning's attack on Redwood park from the supervillain calling herself Switchblade."_ The news anchor began, as Kendall stepped foot into his lab on Monday morning. _"Luckily, the emergency services were able to deal with the attack, especially due to the absence of Blizzard, following his defeat on Saturday night. Someone was able to capture footage of this on their mobile phone. Warning, the following footage contains graphic images."_ The news anchor continued before the screen began to show the footage of Kendall on his knees while Switchblade was stood above him, with a sword in her hand.

Kendall couldn't help but grimace as he watched the sword come down across his chest, and as he watched, he felt a small bit of pain from the wound that was still healing. It was safe to say that Kendall was past the worst of it, with the wound being mostly healed but the blond knew that it would be best for him to take it easy for a few more days until it fully healed. Still seeing the destruction Switchblade was causing, Kendall couldn't help the ever growing urge to get back out there to fight her.

The blond zoned back in when the news anchor began to speak again. _"As shown now, we know that Blizzard was helped by an unidentified individual, and while the fate of the hero is still unconfirmed, the peoples hopes still remain high. Arthur Griffin, however, renowned for his criticism of the hero, has already made a statement addressing the current situation, which will be played now."_

 _The screen switched to the sight of Griffin stood on a podium outside the Dispatch Weekly building. "If he were a real superhero, then he'd be out here fighting Switchblade instead of hiding, licking his wounds. Blizzard is nothing but-"_ Kendall let out a sigh, and moments later the TV was switched off, causing the blond to look over at Logan, who was pushing the remote away from him slightly to clear space on his desk.

"Asshole. He should be grateful that Blizzard is even here in his city, instead of slagging him off like he is. This place would be a lot worse if Blizzard wasn't out there looking out for us" Logan began, causing Kendall to raise an eyebrow at him. "Sorry, I just hate the guy"

"He is a bit of a jackass" Kendall commented, causing Logan to let out a little chuckle as he pushed his goggles up to the bridge of his nose.

"I mean, it's easy to be critical of someone else's actions, but for Blizzard to go out and do all of that stuff, I mean, I have a lot of respect for him. I just hope that he's ok"

"Something tells me that he's alright" Kendall replied, fighting the smug smile that was threatening to grow on his face. "But I can imagine he's taking it easy for a few days. I mean, it looked like he got hurt pretty bad"

"Yeah, and I don't blame him for wanting to heal up" Logan replied, causing a small smile to grow on Kendall's face. "I just hope that nothing bad happens in the meantime. If Switchblade or Inferno decide to flare up again, we're going to want him at his best if we want them defeated"

"We can only hope" Kendall replied, causing Logan to flash him a small smile before the brunet returned to his work, leaving Kendall alone with his thoughts. Logan was right, Kendall wasn't in any state to be fighting them, and yet the blond had this gut feeling that something was going to go wrong.

It was never as easy as just waiting until he was healed before he jumped into action, the blond had learnt that the hard way, so he was waiting for the next _big_ thing. Of course, the thing that Kendall needed to consider now was how James would feel about the whole thing.

Kendall knew that James wasn't going to try and stop him, the brunet was too selfless for that, but much like he'd said yesterday, James couldn't keep nursing him back to health. That would definitely start to take a toll on the brunet, and the one thing that Kendall didn't want was to start causing James anguish when the whole point of Blizzard was to stop that from happening to people.

The blond let out a sigh.

This was now going to turn into a careful balancing act, but at the end of the day, the blond knew that he just needed to be careful and smarter about how he approached things. Kendall knew where he went wrong with Switchblade, he let her get to him and at the end of the day, it caused him to get massively hurt. He was acting out of anger instead of thinking about what he was doing, and from what Kendall gathered, the only way to deal with Switchblade was with a plan. She seemed to pick up on what moves he was using, and she started to adapt to them, so Kendall knew that he'd have to carefully choose what he was doing to do instead of just going for it.

Another sigh escaped Kendall's mouth, this time as he shuffled to the left slightly causing his shoulder to twinge in pain.

It was all well and good thinking about what he was going to do, but the blond knew that he needed to do was to get out there and act, despite what was best for his injuries. At the moment, there were two supervillains roaming the city and Kendall was scared to think of what would happen if the two of them decided to work together.

Inferno had been eerily quiet, so Kendall was worried that he was planning something big and by the looks of things, Switchblade was making good on her promise to make the city burn. She'd started with a park, but Kendall knew that that was only to get the public's attention and that before long she'd be bringing buildings down to the ground. Kendall's hand balled into a fist at his sides. He really did need to get back out there, and starting from tonight, he'd start patrolling the streets once again.

But first, he'd have to get through a day of lab-work and waitering.

* * *

"I didn't realise that you were reckless James" Henry began as soon as James stepped off of the lift in his dad's office.

"And what's that supposed to mean?" the brunet asked, rolling his eyes as he approached his father's desk.

Instead of answering, Henry simply held up a newspaper showing a picture of James by Kendall's side, as well as him helping Kendall walk away from his fight with Switchblade. "I think I can recognise my son when I see him" Henry replied, causing James to roll his eyes.

"Well, I couldn't exactly let him die. He is looking out for us after all" _'And he's also my boyfriend, but I didn't know at the time'_ James thought, but he quickly shook that thought from his head.

"I told you before James, we don't need protection. And it was foolish of you to run to him with that villain in the area, she could have killed you"

"Is that concern in your voice?" James asked, pointing at his father with his eyebrow raised, causing Henry to just roll his eyes.

"Of course I'm concerned about you James" Henry replied, causing James' heart to warm slightly as he took a seat. "I mean, if you died, then who would take over the company when I'm gone?" That caused the warmth in James' heart to disappear as well as the brunet's face to drop.

"Is that why you called me in here today? You ridicule me?" the brunet asked, causing Henry to shake his head, as he moved the newspaper out of his way.

"No, I called you here to tell you that I was right" Henry stated boldly, before reaching into his desk and pulling out a slip of paper, which was placed in front of James.

"What's this?" James asked, looking down at the piece of paper.

"It's a note from a specialist, saying that what I have is nothing more than a chest cold" Henry replied, as James read through the paper as he described the symptoms his father had, before the final diagnosis of a chest cold.

"But the other doctor said it wasn't a cold. He said that you needed proper medical attention"

"Then clearly he wasn't very good at his job" Henry replied, letting out a snort of derision after he said so. "As it says here, I'm perfectly fine, and that my symptoms should go away within a week or two, so you don't need to worry about me anymore"

"I don't know Dad, that other doctor was pretty concerned about you and he was adamant that it wasn't a cold. Maybe you should go to someone else and get checked?" James asked, causing his father to roll his eyes as he grabbed the slip of paper and put it back into his desk.

"Doctor Burrens is the best consultant physician in Spirit City, so I trust her judgement. If she says that it's just a chest cold, then I believe in her judgement" Henry replied, causing James to let out a sigh, partially of relief.

"Alright. I guess I'm just glad that you got it checked out, and that there is nothing to worry about. After what happened with mum, I guess I was just a bit paranoid" James stated, causing Henry to give him a small smile.

"And I can't blame you for that, but next time, have a little faith in your father. I know more than you might think" Henry replied, causing James to let out a little chuckle before his phone pinged.

Glancing down at it, James' face dropped once again. "I've got to go. Griffin wants me to write an 'expose' about Blizzard's lack of actions" the brunet said, rolling his eyes as he did so before standing up from the chair. "Um, thanks for letting me know that you're ok"

"I was only proving that I was right" Henry replied, causing James to roll his eyes once more as he began to walk away from his father's desk. Still, he couldn't help the small smile that was growing on his face at that news that his father was ok.

What he didn't know, however, was that his father had shown him a fake medical report.

* * *

"It needs to be critical, and condemnatory! You need to call out his lack of actions, and you need to show Spirit City what a menace Blizzard is!" Griffin stated, causing James to nod as if he wasn't internally rolling his eyes at Griffin's words. "This needs to be your best piece of work Diamond. You need to show everyone what…"

"A menace he is"

"Exactly!" Griffin said, pointing at James with a grin on his face. "I expect big things and I look forward to reading it! Dismissed" Griffin finally finished, causing James to nod before he turned and walked out of Griffin's office.

James already hated writing pieces that attack Blizzard and his actions, but now knowing that it's his boyfriend in the suit, that might make it a little more difficult. Then again, the opposite could also be true as James knew that Kendall understood what James' job required. Hell, they might even be able to laugh about all the stuff that James is writing.

Lost in thought, James sat down at his desk in autopilot and it wasn't until Camille turned around that James finally snapped out of it.

"My hero!" she said, waving her hands in the air before pulling James into a hug.

"What are you doing?" James asked, rigid in her embrace.

"I'm hugging you" Camille replied, causing James to roll his eyes, although he couldn't help the small smile that had grown on his face.

"Ok, let me rephrase it. Why are you hugging me?"

"Because you're my hero!" She replied, causing James to quirk an eyebrow at her.

"And why am I your hero?" he asked, feeling like he was having to spell everything out for her. Still, the brunet couldn't help but smile.

"Because of your heroic actions with Blizzard. Running up and saving him" she whispered, causing James' eyebrow to quirk even more.

"Does everyone know what it was me?" he asked, causing Camille to roll her eyes.

"If everyone knew, do you think I'd be whispering" she replied, causing James to chuckle. This was the Camille that he knew and loved. "And if everyone knew, then Griffin would have probably shouted at you and then fired you for not taking the chance to unmask the 'masked menace'"

"Ok, fair point" James replied, glancing around the office to see that everyone was just working normally. "How you'd know it was me?" he asked, causing Camille to roll her eyes once again.

"Um, maybe because I know what you look like?" she replied, her tone making it sound like it was the most obvious thing ever. "So, what was he like?"

"In pain?" James replied, deciding to be sarcastic back. That earned him a smack on the arm. "Ok, ok fine. He was…surprisingly insistent for a badly injured person" James settled on, wondering how to best describe the whole situation. "I already told you what he was like when I interviewed him"

"But this is different. That was all pompous interview stuff, whereas this is proper in the field journalism. You got to see what Blizzard was like in action and directly afterwards" Camille replied, causing James to tilt his head slightly. She was right, this was different, but it was safe to say that James preferred the whole 'pompous' interview stuff. "So, what was he insistent about?"

"That he didn't want to be taken to a hospital" James replied, causing Camille to nod and shrug. "To be fair, you can't blame him. If I were him, I wouldn't want to go to a hospital and risk my identity getting out there."

"If it were you, you would have insulted Switchblade to death with your sarcasm" James replied, something that earned him another smack on his arm.

"So, what happened then? If you didn't take him to a hospital, then where did you take him? Back to his secret base, or maybe even his apartment"

"I didn't take him anywhere" James lied, causing Camille to raise an eyebrow at him. "Once I got him out of the cemetery, he said he felt better so he just skated off. I don't know where he went" James continued lying, but the brunet knew it was for the best. If he told any more of the story, Camille would end up finding out that it's Kendall, and James didn't need for that to happen.

"Seriously?"

"Swear on my life"

"That's disappointing," Camille said, her face dropping slightly. "I was really hoping you like, patched him up for something" She continued, causing James to let out a forced chuckle.

"Please, could you imagine me trying to patch someone up? It would be horrible."

"Yeah, it would be pretty tragic" Camille smirked, causing James to let out another forced chuckle.

Turning back to his desk, James let out a sigh. He felt bad lying to Camille like that, but at the same time, he knew it was for the best.

After all, he had promised to keep Kendall's secret, and it was a promise he intended to keep.

* * *

"That's it. All I have to do now is lock up once we leave" Kendall said to James as he slid into the booth opposite where the brunet was sat. The café was empty apart from the two of them, since it was past closing time, with James staying to keep Kendall company. As the blond slid into the booth, James could tell that he had something on his mind.

Closing the lid on his laptop, James spoke up. "You're not coming back to mine tonight are you. You're going out" James said, phrasing it more of a statement than a question since he knew the blond so well.

"With the attack this morning, I feel like I should be back out there. I mean, who knows what Switchblade is going to do next. You heard the threat she made" Kendall replied, causing James to nod.

"I did, but I also saw the wounds that she'd inflicted on you," James said, causing Kendall to let out a sigh. "I'm not trying to stop you or anything. I said that I wouldn't, but I just worry about you. I mean, you're still not fully healed, and you already want to get back out there. I'm just worried is all" James continued, causing Kendall to flash him a small smile as he reached his hand over the table, placing it on top of James.

"I know you do, but…I need to do this James. No-one else is going to be able to stop her, and if she isn't stopped, things will keep getting worse" Kendall replied, squeezing James hand. "Besides, once she's stopped, I'll be able to focus all of my attention on Inferno and the people he's threatened"

That caused James to smile slightly, provided the brunet didn't think too long about it. In this fucked up world, that was Kendall's way of saying they'd be able to spend some time together.

"They might like that" James replied, flashing Kendall a small smile. "Just…promise me that you'll be careful. I don't think I could deal with you whining about the pain for a second time" James added, causing Kendall to roll his eyes playfully before squeezing James' hand once again.

"I will be" The blond smiled, causing James to smile back at him. "Now let's get out of here before we get distracted"

"That wouldn't be the worst thing would it?" James smirked with a mischievous glint in his eyes.

"It wouldn't, but I can't imagine my boss would be happy when he found out" Kendall replied with a chuckle, before nodding his head to the CCTV camera that was in the corner.

"Alright, you win this time" James conceded, grabbing his laptop and placing it into his bag before he and Kendall slid out the booth.

With the door locked, the two of them shared one last kiss for the night before they parted ways. Still, as Kendall ducked into a back alley, James couldn't help the uneasy feeling in his gut. Something about it told him that this wasn't something he was going to get used to over time.

He could only hope that Kendall returned to him safely.

* * *

 **So there we have it! Switchblade's attacked once again, and Kendall's decided to get back out there after his fight with her, despite the fact that he's not fully healed yet. James' father has lied to him saying that he's ok, when he's actually not and Griffin's still on the warpath in bringing Blizzard down! So yeah, just a little chapter wrapping everything up again! I hope you guys enjoyed it!**

 **I want to say a massive thank you to Guest, Winterschild11, RainbowDiamonds and EpicallyObsessed for reviewing the last chapter and I'm so glad that you enjoyed it! Kendall certainly did have a crappy childhood, bless his poor soul, but it has certainly shaped who he is today. We will get more chapters about Kendall's backstory, like how he learnt to control his powers and that, so stay tuned for those, but I thought it was a good place to break last time. Otherwise, we'd have like 10 chapters just on Kendall's past in one go!**

 **Anyway, I'm so sorry that I missed Rush and Response on Thursday! I had an assignment due, that I may have left until the last minute, so I had to write that 😬 But this weeks chapter is planned, so I can get on writing that right away! I hope you all have a great week, and I will see you on Thursday! But until then,**

 **TTFN 😃❄**


	21. Chapter 21

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! I have to admit, I'm super curious to see how you all react to this chapter, so let's crack on with it, shall we? It's definitely a big one.**

* * *

As James walked home that night, all he could think about was the conversation he'd had with Kendall, with the brunet hoping that nothing bad would happen. Since Kendall's reveal, James found that his thoughts were pretty much going in circles, with him hoping that Kendall wouldn't get hurt, while also knowing that in Kendall's line of work, some injuries were expected.

Still, that didn't mean that James wouldn't do what he could to stop Kendall from getting into those situations and that if he did get into a situation such as that, James knew that he'd do what he could to help Kendall in any way that he could. The brunet shook his head briefly, hoping to shake these thoughts from his mind.

He was even starting to confuse himself with all the 'would' and 'wouldn'ts' and it was getting difficult to follow. Letting the music drown out his thoughts, James took a deep breath, breathing in the night's cool air as he tried to relax.

Everything would work out fine.

Kendall promised that he'd be careful, and that was the best that the blond could do. As far as James knew, his dad was perfectly healthy, which was a massive relief to him and his relationship with Kendall was in a really good place, despite everything that had happened. A small smile began to grace James' face. Everything was actually looking up for the brunet, and it felt really good for him to be in such a position.

Of course, all good things must come to an end, and that end came sooner than James wanted it to. As the brunet walked down the street, a huge eruption of noise came from the city centre, causing James to glance around, one earphone being pulled from his ear. The sight was undeniable, with there being no debate as to where this noise had come from, causing James' jaw to drop massively as the brunet began to shake in his place at what he was witnessing.

Everyone around him was in a similar state, but James was the first of them to finally gain some self-control, the brunet using it to sprint towards the closest taxi, despite the fact that someone was currently stood at it with the door open. As James reached the taxi, no remorse was shown as the brunet slid into it, shutting the door on the bystander who was still in shock from the explosion that had taken place.

"Drive" was all James said to the taxi driver, causing the man to raise an eyebrow at the brunet.

"To where?" the man asked, causing James to point towards the disaster.

"Towards that" was all the brunet responded with, taking some cash out of his wallet and throwing it at the driver. James knew that he'd probably massively overpaid the man, but that was the least of his worries at the moment, with James scrambling around to try and reach his phone was his pocket. With the state that James had worked himself into, the task was more challenging than it should have been, something that only frustrated James more.

"Stupid piece of shit" James mumbled to himself as he finally pulled the device from his pocket, and unlocked it, his hands shaking slightly from the nerves. They only seemed to get worse when the number he tried to ring didn't pick up.

"Faster" James said to the taxi driver, and the man must have seen the state that James was in, as he didn't even try to question the brunet. Instead, the driver just obeyed the command.

When James arrived at the scene, he felt like his heart was in his mouth, worry fuelling every action that he was making. The brunet didn't even wait for the taxi driver to say anything, he just jumped out of the cab, and began to push his way to the front of the crowd present at the police barricade. Everything was a haze as he made his way forward, but he could hear the people whispering and talking about him like he wasn't even present.

They all conveyed their grief and despair, but none of them could know what he was feeling in that current moment, with the uncertainty of what lied looming over him. No one offered resistance as he pushed past them, some even moved out of his way, allowing him to get closer to the cause of his devastation, but that all came to a close when he finally reached the police blockade, the first person he saw being Chief Garcia.

"James," Carlos said, walking towards the brunet, but James didn't even stop at first, the brunet on autopilot as he tried to get as close to the scene as possible. The only reason he stopped was because Carlos grabbed his arm, stopping him from going any further, and that's when James finally snapped back into reality slightly, with everything hitting him in full force.

"What…what happened?" James asked, the words struggling to leave his mouth in the wake of the destruction.

"We're still unsure on that, but we think that Inferno had something to do with it" Carlos replied, before letting out a sigh. "James," Carlos said, causing the brunet to finally look at the police chief. "Your dad is still in the building" Carlos explained, and finally, James broke down, the brunet falling to his knees as he stared up at the Diamond Inc tower, which was flaring with a raging fire that seemed to engulf the majority of the building.

* * *

As the blond skated to the site of the explosion, he tried his best to not let his personal feelings get the best of him, with him watching as his place of work ignited into flames. Kendall knew that Inferno had something to do with this, he could feel it in his gut. Despite how much of a psychopath Switchblade was, Kendall knew that this was Inferno's work, especially with his grudge against the Diamond's.

What better way to make a statement than to blow up the biggest building in the city, especially when it's one that has the Diamond name written down the side of it. Kendall could only hope that James was faring ok with all of this, well as ok as he could be. Kendall shook his head, trying to get those thoughts of out his head. As bad as it sounded, the blond knew that James wasn't his top priority in this situation. That was to save anyone who was still in the building, and hopefully, to stop the entire thing from collapsing onto them.

Still, as Kendall skated above the rooftops, he couldn't help but notice the small bout of pain that was coming from his chest wound. The blond had really hoped that he'd have time to heal properly, but he knew that he was just going to have to make do with the state that he was in. His comfort was the least of his concerns.

Approaching the blast zone, Kendall saw that the police had already set up a perimeter around the building, stopping anyone from getting closer to it, and he also saw how the fire brigade was doing their best to put out the fires that engulfed the middle of the building. As much as Kendall hated to admit it however, he knew that the fire brigade's attempts were useless in this situation, their water cannons weren't reaching high enough to have any considerable effect.

However, one noise seemed to stand out above them all, and that was the sound of his boyfriend screaming at the Chief of Police.

"Please, I have to go in and help him!" James screamed, and Kendall could hear the pain in his voice, even from this distance.

"We have recovery teams in there at the moment, and they're helping anyone who is still in there out of the building. They'll get to him James" Carlos replied, but James just shook his head.

"They won't get to him fast enough. Please, let me in there!" James replied, pushing against Carlos slightly as if to try and loosen the hold the Latino had on him. Of course, that only caused Carlos' hold to strengthen, so Kendall knew it was time to get down to the two of them. Skating down, just in front of the perimeter, the first eyes that he made contact with were James' and Kendall had to try his best not to run to the brunet right then and there.

Taking a deep breath, Kendall finally approached them. "What happened Chief?" the blond asked, trying not to stare at the tears that were falling from James' eyes.

"An explosion has gone off on the 55th floor. We think that Inferno had something to do with it, but no one has seen him so we're not certain" Carlos replied, James sobbing in between them.

"My dad's still in there. He's on the top floor. You have to help him" the brunet sobbed, almost falling to his knees once again before Carlos caught him.

"We've evacuated everyone below the 50th floor and rescue teams are still working their way up the floors, but…" Carlos paused to let out a sigh. "It's unlikely that they're going to be able to get much higher than that. From what the helicopter has shown us, those floors are completely destroyed and engulfed in flames."

"Can't a helicopter land on the roof and help them?" James asked, trying his best to keep his sobs under control, but when Kendall shook his head, all control was lost once again.

"The smoke from the building would make it difficult for the helicopter to navigate. Plus, we can't risk landing on the building as it may just collapse under the weight" Kendall explained, walking over to James and placing his hand onto the brunet's shoulder. It was the most support he could show at the moment, and it was killing the blond inside. "Chief, who is still in the building, above those floors?" Kendall asked, causing Carlos to let out a sigh.

"Mr Diamond is on the top floor, and he's locked himself in his panic room. There are a few lab techs and some janitors stuck above the flames as well, and they're scattered from floor to floor. We've managed to access the camera system in the building, so if you take a radio with you, I'll guide you to them." Carlos replied, passing Kendall a radio, causing the blond to nod.

"Alright, wish me luck," Kendall said, giving James' shoulder one last squeeze. "Don't worry, I'll get your father out of there safely"

"Thank you" James replied, flashing Kendall the best smile he could muster, although it wasn't much.

Taking a deep breath, Kendall set off into a sprint, before taking one last look at James, who was trying his best to be strong. 'I love you' James mouthed, causing a small sad smile to grow on Kendall's face.

This was certainly going to be one of his more difficult rescues missions, that was for sure.

* * *

Kendall arrived at the 55th floor, in what the blond felt was record speed, but that didn't matter as he stared at the devastation that seemed to overwhelm the floor. Without getting confirmation from Carlos, Kendall already knew that there would be no one alive on this floor, so when Carlos finally told him, the blond wasn't surprised.

"The next victim is on floor 58," the Police chief said over the radio, causing Kendall to nod as he began to put out as many fires as he could, since the sprinkler system hadn't activated, along with creating ice columns to help the structural integrity of the building. Working with fires was something that Kendall was starting to become familiar with, as morbid as the thought was, so he had a routine in place. Kendall got through floors 55, 56, and 57 pretty quickly, with the blond not letting himself think about where he actually was but instead focusing on what was at stake if he failed.

"Whereabouts are they Chief?" Kendall asked, pushing a small bit of rubble out of his way as he walked through the corridor.

"They're in lab 5-8-5" Carlos replied, causing Kendall to set off straight towards the lab. Thanks to the uniformity of the floors in the Diamond Inc building, Kendall knew exactly where he was going, but it was when he arrived at the lab that it got difficult. Without even trying the door, Kendall knew he couldn't get able to get into the room. A metal support beam was slanted across the door stopping anyone from accessing it.

Taking a deep breath, Kendall grabbed hold of the door and ripped it off of its hinges, before placing it down on the floor. With that done, Kendall then crawled under the metal beam, making sure not to touch it as he knew that it would be superheated.

"They're at the back of the lab, hiding under one of the desks" Carlos stated, causing Kendall to nod once again, as he began to walk through the destroyed room. It wasn't difficult for him to find the lab tech, one who was huddled in fear below one of the desks, which had some rubble sat on top of it.

"Oh, Blizzard, thank the lord," the woman said, pulling herself from under the desk and giving him a big hug, as she began to sob.

"Shh, it's ok" Kendall replied, trying to comfort her as best he could. "I've cleared the floors below this one, so it's safe for you to get out. There is a rescue team waiting for you on on the stairwell leading up to the 55th floor. They'll get you to safety" Kendall explained, causing the woman to nod.

"Alright, alright," she said, causing Kendall to place his arm on her shoulder.

"You can do this. You're going to be ok" Kendall added, causing the woman to nod once again. With the two of them making their way out of the room, Kendall escorted her for as long as he could, before he continued his climb up the building.

"Where's the next person chief?" Kendall asked as he got into the stairwell.

"Floor 64. He's a janitor, who's taken shelter in lab 6-4-8" Carlos replied, causing Kendall to nod, the blond taking two stairs at a time as he began his long climb. It was a few minutes later when Carlos came over the radio once again. "Blizzard, I just thought I'd inform you; we've started to notice some cracks in the supports for the building on road level. I'm getting some of my people to start installing some adjustable supports to try and prevent the building from collapsing, but I wanted you to be aware of the situation."

"Thanks, chief" Kendall replied, taking another couple of steps. "How many people are still in here?" the blond asked, causing Carlos to let out a sigh.

"There's the janitor on 64, two lab-techs on 68, another janitor on 79, and another lab tech on 97, and then Mr Diamond is on 110. Thankfully, this attack happened in the middle of the night, or it could have been a lot worse" Carlos replied, causing Kendall to let out a small sigh.

Carlos was right, the situation could have been a lot worse, but it was definitely bad enough as it was.

"Alright, I'll pick up the pace"

* * *

"I've cleared the floors below here, and there is a rescue team waiting for you in the stairwell of floor 55," Kendall said, as he helped the man out from under some rubble. "Will you be ok to get there?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'll be fine. It's just, that's forty floors down, can't you come with me?" the man asked, causing Kendall to shake his head.

"Unfortunately not. There's someone else trapped and I need to get them out" Kendall replied, causing the man to nod as he took a couple of deep breaths through the wet cloth he was holding.

"Alright, I can do this" the man replied, causing Kendall to flash him a small sad smile before the two of them left the room. As they walked down the corridor, Kendall took a moment to breathe, but he wasn't even allowed that luxury. "Blizzard, look out!" the man shouted, and before Kendall even had a chance to react, he was tackled to the ground with him going through the wall adjacent to him.

"Run! Get down to the rescue teams!" Kendall shouted to the man, wincing in pain due to the impact of hitting the ground. It was only then that he finally looked up at what had tackled him, to see Inferno straddling him.

"Long time no see Blizzard" the villain began, making sure to pin Kendall's hands to the ground before he could make any action to react.

"Inferno, I knew you were behind this" Kendall gritted out, struggling under the villain slightly, which only caused his chest to sting in pain.

"Behold, only the start of my rampage against the Diamond Family. First, I will bring their empire down to the ground, quite literally in this case. Then, I will target the ones that they love the most, to show them the pain of losing a loved one to greed and corruption, and finally, they will get what has always been coming to them" Inferno monologued once again, Kendall using the opportunity to try and get some sort of advantage on Inferno.

As soon as the guy had stopped talking, Kendall sprung into action, the blond using his pinned hands to try and free Inferno as best as he could. Instead, the supervillain just laughed, superheating himself that the ice just melted away.

"You think that that trick would work on me? Your powers are useless against me, and that's why you'll never be able to stop me" Inferno mocked, but Kendall wasn't willing to give him. If he couldn't use his power, then he'd just have to play dirty.

Taking a deep breath, Kendall threw his head up in full force, headbutting Inferno which caused the villain to stumble back slightly. Using the opportunity, Kendall jumped back to his feet and began to throw ice shards at the villain, hoping to distract him long enough so that he could get close. Every shard launched was melted, but Kendall wasn't too concerned, he was gaining towards Inferno, something Inferno was too preoccupied to notice.

As soon as Kendall was close enough, the blond took action, using his power to freeze both of Inferno's leg to the ground. While the villain focused on unfreezing his legs, Kendall froze the guy's arms, creating another distraction for Inferno to deal with, while Kendall reached up into the ceiling and pulled out one of the loose cables hanging there. The blond took too long, however, and in the split second it took for him to grab the cable, Inferno had free himself completely and launched a punch into Kendall's gut, one that caused the blond to go flying back before he slammed into the wall behind him.

"You think you're so smart" Inferno began, as the villain began to approach Kendall. The blond knew that he needed to think fast. His usual powers weren't going to work in a situation like this, but he just needed something to scare Inferno away. Today was not the day to bring the villain, as Kendall still needed to rescue James' dad and get out before the entire building collapsed. "But you can't win" Inferno continued, Kendall glancing around as quickly as he could. That's when something on the ceiling caught his eye and a small smile grew on the blond's face. "You're never going to be able to stop the misery I'm going to cause" Inferno stated, as Kendall grabbed a small piece of rubble that was sat next to him.

With a quick lob of the rubble, Kendall watched as it flew through the air and struck the sprinkler situated above them. As soon as it connected with it, the sprinkler sprung to lift, pouring water over the two of them, and Kendall used this to his advantage, freezing all of the small water pellets that fell to the ground, each of them like tiny hailstones. The sheer amount of them causing Inferno's powers to become useless, with them putting out every single flame that he tried to make.

"I'm not as stupid as you think" Kendall commented, pulling himself off the floor. Before he could even react however, Inferno took off in a sprint, the villain launching himself through one of the closest windows. Panicked, Kendall ran towards the scene, but as he reached the window, he saw Inferno fly back up to his eye level.

"You haven't seen the last of me, Blizzard! Good luck stopping this building from collapsing!" Inferno said, before flying down on a diagonal straight through the building.

Kendall felt it shake behind him, so the blond knew that he didn't have long left to save James' dad. Without another second passing, Kendall ran to the stairs, hoping that he could get up the next 13 flight of stairs quickly. That was only reinforced when Carlos came over the radio once again.

"Blizzard, I'm evacuating everyone from the air. That building is going to come down soon, and we don't need any more casualties. I suggest you get out of there now as well" the chief said over the mic, causing Kendall to shake his head.

"No can do Chief, Mr Diamond is still in here. Make sure that everyone else is safe" Kendall replied, causing the radio to go silent for a few seconds before Carlos spoke up.

"Good luck Blizzard" was all Carlos said before the radio went silent again, leaving Kendall alone with the sounds of rumbling and metal bending beneath him.

It was safe to say that this was his most dangerous mission yet.

* * *

Arriving at the top floor, the first thing Kendall did was look around as he tried to find the panic room. That's when he felt the building shake from under him, the blond having to use the wall to try and brace himself. That definitely wasn't a good sign, and Kendall knew that he needed to act fast. One more glance around revealed the location of the panic room, and as soon as the building had stopped shaking, Kendall headed straight over to it.

"Mr Diamond?" Kendall asked, banging on the metal door, causing the sound to echo. "It's Blizzard. I'm here to get you out safely."

"I'm perfectly safe in here" Henry shouted back, causing Kendall to let out a small sigh of relief. At least he knew the man was still alive.

"Mr Diamond, the building is going to collapse, and when he does, this panic room is not going to help you"

"This panic room is made of the strongest metal. I'll be fine" Henry replied, causing Kendall to let out a sigh as he shook his head.

"I don't have time for this" the blond mumbled to himself as he began to freeze the edges of the door, forcing ice into the cracks which caused it to expand. With enough ice in place, the door popped off its hinges and fell towards the blond, revealing Mr Diamond huddled in one of the corners.

"How dare you! I was perfectly protected in here" Mr Diamond objected, but Kendall just ignored the man as he approached him.

"Sir, we need to get out here now" Kendall repeated, causing the man to let out a huff.

"Fine, but expect me to file a formal complaint about this" Mr Diamond replied, causing Kendall to roll his eyes. No wonder James had difficulty with his man.

As soon as the two of them had left the panic room, the building shook massively one last time, and that's when Kendall heard a giant rumble from below him.

In a split second decision, Kendall grabbed hold of Mr Diamond and ran towards the window. Just as the blond's foot left the building, it collapsed behind him, the uptake of debris and smoke causing Kendall to wobble slightly as he skated away.

Skating to the nearest rooftop, Kendall watched as the Diamond Empire fell to the ground, and he could only hope that James was somewhere safe and far away.

* * *

 **So there we have it! Inferno is back, and his attack was pretty bold! Like I said at the start, I'm curious to see how you are going to react to this!**

 **I want to say a massive thank you to Guest, Winterschild11, RainbowDiamonds and EpicallyObsessed for reviewing the last chapter and I'm so glad that you enjoyed it! You're all curious as to why James' dad lied to James about the medical report and trust me, all will be revealed soon! And yeah, Griffin is still a dick! Plus, you all know me, and something did have to go wrong! It's been like...5 chapters since some action happened 😈**

 **I will see you on Thursday for the next chapter of Rush and Response, and I hope you all have a great week! I have an exam on Wednesday, which I am totally unprepared for but oh well! Anyway, I will see you Thursday, but until then,**

 **TTFN 😃❄**


	22. Chapter 22

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! I don't have a lot to say, so let's crack on with this, shall we?**

* * *

James coughed as the cloud of rubble began to clear from the air, his elbow covering his mouth in the hopes of stopping from inhaling anything from the air. With the lack of sight due to the dust, James' ears seemed to hyper-focus onto every sound that was being made. Sirens seemed to fill most of it, with James being able to make out three distinct types, from the fire engines, police cars and ambulances, but the sound of weeping and crying was also undeniable with the sea of sounds he was experiencing. Not that any of them had the right to cry in James' opinion.

They hadn't just watched a large proportion of their past crumble to the ground in front of them, while they held the fear that their father and boyfriend were in there.

As the dust finally cleared from the air, everyone was left with an empty skyline, a massive hole now existing where Diamond Inc once stood. Tears began to form in James' eyes, but the brunet he couldn't let it get the better of him, at least not now while Kendall's and his father's fates were still to be determined. Glancing around, James found Carlos coordinating with the Fire Chief and the Chief EMT, and without a second thought, James found himself walking over to them.

"Have you heard anything from Blizzard?" James asked, causing Carlos to finish what he was saying to his counterparts before he turned to James.

"No, I haven't heard anything, but I'll give them a try" Carlos replied, causing James to nod, while he twitched slightly as his nerves got the better of him. "Blizzard, this is Chief Garcia, do you copy?" Carlos asked into his radio, and as soon as he was finished, they were both met with the eerie sound of static. A few seconds went by before Carlos tried again. "I repeat, Blizzard this is Chief Garcia, do you copy"

"I copy Chief," Kendall's voice said, but it wasn't coming from the radio. Frantically looking around, James' eyes finally landed on Kendall, and without even thinking about it, James crossed the distance between them and pulled Kendall into a hug as he let a few stray tears fall down his face. It was only after a few seconds that James realised that Kendall wasn't hugging him back, and when James pulled out, he saw that Kendall had his eyebrow raised. Still, James could see the love Kendall held in his eyes.

"Sorry Blizzard, I don't know what came over me," James said, backing away from the blond slightly, despite the fact that it was killing him inside. "Is my dad ok?" James asked, causing Kendall to nod, as he stuck his thumb over his shoulder.

"He's just getting checked over by the EMT's, but he's not injured" Kendall replied, causing James to nod once again, as he shuffled slightly.

"I'm going to go check on him. Thank you for saving his life"

"Don't mention it" Kendall replied, causing the two of them to flash each other one more smile before James walked away.

It was killing Kendall on the inside not to hug James back, but the blond knew that he had to keep up his appearances. When James was finally out of earshot, Kendall spoke up again. "How's he faring?" the blond asked, causing Carlos to shrug.

"I think he's doing ok, but he didn't really speak a lot once you'd gone into the building. I could tell he was worried, but that was about it" Carlos replied, causing Kendall to nod, feeling so sorry for James. "What happened in there? We saw Inferno fly through the building, and then we heard nothing from you" Carlos asked, causing Kendall to let out a deep breath.

"He attacked me on the 97th Floor after I'd saved the lab-tech up there. I managed to stop him briefly, but that's when he threw himself out of the window and flew through the building. Luckily, I was able to get up to Mr Diamond before the whole building come down" Kendall explained, causing Carlos to rub his head, wiping the small bit of sweat that had gathered there.

"And did he say anything? Anything that could give his next target away?" Carlos asked, causing Kendall to let out a sigh.

"He told me his whole plan essentially. He said that he's going to go after 'the ones they love the most to show them the pain of losing a loved one to greed and corruption' next before finally going after Mr Diamond himself."

"Still, he was pretty close to killing Mr Diamond off today. If it wasn't for you, he'd be dead" Carlos stated, causing Kendall to nod, leaning back against the police car by their side to gain a bit of a rest. "Did anything else happen up there?" Carlos asked, causing Kendall to shake his head.

"Not really. Did all the lab techs get out ok?" Kendall replied, causing Carlos to nod.

"They did, and they're being treated by the EMT's now, but I was referring to something with Mr Diamond. Apparently, he's already lodged a formal complaint against you" Carlos said, causing Kendall to let out a little chuckle.

"Oh god, that" the blond began, letting out a sigh as he smiled. "He was convinced that he as going to be safe in his panic room and refused to leave. In the end, I had to break the door down and physically carry him out of there"

"It's a good thing as well as that panic room crumbled as soon as it hit the ground" Carlos replied, causing Kendall to nod alongside him. "Still, out of principle, I'm going to have to give you a ticket" Carlos continued, pulling a split of paper from his belt before writing on it and handing it to Kendall.

One glance at the paper, and couldn't help but let out a little chuckle. "Thanks, Chief," Kendall said, grinning at Carlos, who was grinning back at him, due to the piece of paper that had 'bad superhero' written on it. "So, will you need a hand with the clear up or?"

"No, I think we're good. I mean, it's gonna take a couple of weeks to clear everything away but I think we can start that in the morning. At the moment, it's just about making sure that everyone's ok" Carlos replied, causing Kendall to nod.

"Alright, then I'm gonna head off. Inferno and Switchblade are still out there, and after today, I think it's safe to say, they're not gonna stop at anything"

"Well, thank you for your help today Blizzard. It means a lot that you were able to get everyone out of the building."

"As I said to James, don't mention it. I'm just doing what I can" Kendall replied, before pushing himself off of the car.

With one final nod to Carlos, Kendall took off in a sprint and skated into the air, the blond's aim to head back to his apartment and get changed before he met back up with James.

* * *

It wasn't difficult for James to find his father, despite the chaos of the area, as all James had to do was follow the loudest voice complaining the most.

"I'm telling you, I'm fine, so you don't need to run any tests of me," Henry said to the EMT, completely unaware of James' approach.

"Mr Diamond, please. I need to make sure that you're ok, you've been through a lot" the EMT replied, and just as Henry was about to reply, James, spoke up.

"Dad, just let her do her job." The brunet said, causing Henry to look over at the brunet. That gave the EMT to get the blood pressure reading she required, but Mr Diamond was more than happy to help her remove the inflatable sleeve.

"Well, your blood pressure is high, but that's to be expected considering what you've just been through. Still, I want to take a blood sample so we can check for smoke inhalation. You were up there for a while, so it's possible that you've inhaled quite a bit of smoke." The EMT said, and that's when James' dad stood from the back of the ambulance as he pulled off the wires connected to him.

"I'm telling you, I'm fine. I've let you run all these tests of me up to this point, but no more. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have places to be" Henry said, causing James to roll his eyes watching as his father stormed off.

"Is there anything we need to be concerned about?" James asked her, causing the woman to shrug as she began to collect the cables.

"His preliminary results were fine, but it's difficult to tell much without a blood sample. Smoke inhalation can cause real damage to someone's lungs, especially if steps aren't being taken to monitor it, so I would suggest he gets that blood test" the EMT replied, causing James to nod.

"I will, thank you" James replied, before he left the EMT alone, and began to chase after his father.

Despite what his father had said earlier that day, he was still having breathing problems, and the last thing James wanted was for his father's problems to get worse. It didn't take long for James to catch up to his father, with the older man now being stood on the outskirts of the barricaded area. Henry was scrolling through his phone as James approached.

"It was only a blood test Dad; you should have just let her take a sample." The brunet said, causing Henry to roll his eyes as he slotted his phone into his pocket.

"I told you, James, I'm completely fine and I don't need some test to prove it. Besides, I have a business to run, now more than ever" Henry replied, causing James to shake his head as he let out a sigh.

"Firstly Dad, that's exactly what the tests are for, to prove that you're ok, and secondly, the building you spend most of your life working to get built just collapsed. Surely, now more than ever, you're allowed a break."

"It's just a building James" Henry interrupted, causing James to go silent for a second. "I'll just get another one built. Besides, I have like ten others just like around the world"

"You could have died Dad. You could have been killed. So surely you can take a few days off to just appreciate the fact that you're still alive before you get back to work. That's what the board are for" James replied, reaching out to place his hand on his father's shoulder, hoping to get through to the older man.

However, when Henry just shook his head, James couldn't help but drop his arm. "I'm dealing with it now. End of discuss-" was as far as Henry got before he descended into another coughing fit, the older man clutching at his chest as he tried to catch his breath.

Not quite sure what to do, James found himself rubbing his father's back, hoping that it would help in some way. It was about thirty seconds before this fit finally passed, and Henry was able to catch his breath, and of course, as soon as the coughing stopped, James asked if his father was ok.

"I told you, James, I'm perfectly fine, and even if I was ill, you constantly being on my back, and asking if I'm ok wouldn't be making a difference. Now, I have some phone calls to make, and I'd appreciate it if you left me alone." Henry said, causing James to stand their stunned, watching as his father walked away from him, phone at his ear.

* * *

Just as Kendall finished locking his apartment door, his phone went off causing the blond to assume that it was James ringing, wondering where he was. As he climbed down the stairs, he pulled the phone out of his pocket, and surprise grew on his face when he saw 'Dr Mitchell' flashing on the screen. With intrigue at the back of his mind, Kendall answered the phone. "Doc, I didn't expect you to ring"

"Are you kidding, you've seen the news right? I just wanted to make sure that you're ok" Logan replied, causing a small smile to grow on Kendall's face at the thought of Logan checking on him.

"Yeah, I'm fine Doc, I've just been watching it on the news. It's scary stuff"

"I know, I always thought that Diamond Inc was the safest place in the city, but it just goes to show you huh."

"Yeah, I know what you mean. I can't imagine what it must have been like to be trapped in there" Kendall replied, pushing the door open from his apartment building. As the blond looked up at the skyline, he couldn't get over how weird it looked without the Diamond Inc logo standing above them all. "But I mean, what happens now? We can't get back to work, all our stuff has been destroyed, and we were only one lab out of the 1100 rooms in that building"

"I wouldn't worry about that too much" Logan replied, causing Kendall to quirk his eyebrow at the doctor, despite the fact that Logan couldn't see him. "Diamond Inc owns so many building within the city that they'll find a place for us to work in the meantime. Hell, he probably has buildings that we don't even know about. If there is one thing that I know about Mr Diamond, it's that he's not going to let the building collapsing get in the way of his business"

"That's ridiculous," Kendall said, shaking his head at the comment, although to be fair, the blond knew that Logan was also right. A lot of the buildings in Spirit City held the Diamond Inc logo, so it was possible that they could relocate everyone. "Although, I suppose it is possible"

"I'm just glad that Blizzard was able to get everyone out in time before it came down" Logan spoke up, causing a small smile to grow on Kendall's face. "I mean, he did well to get in there and get everyone out, especially without knowing where anyone was in the building. Plus from what I heard; he was also attacked by Inferno whilst he was in there. One of the lab-techs Blizzard saved said that as he was leaving the building, Blizzard was thrown to the ground and attacked, but that the hero still put his safety above his own, isn't that crazy!" Logan said down the phone, causing Kendall to let out a little chuckle.

"It sure is."

"Especially doing all of that after his fight with Switchblade as well. I bet the guy isn't even fully healed yet, and yet he's jumped into a burning building to rescue a bunch of people"

"You really are a fan, aren't you Doc," Kendall asked, causing Logan to let out a little chuckle on the other side of the phone.

"I suppose you could say that yeah" Logan replied, causing a smile to grow on Kendall's face. "I guess, I'm just fascinated about it all. I mean, I read loads of superhero comics as a kid so to see one in real life is just so intrigued. I loved to know how he got his powers and stuff like that"

"Something tells me we're never going to find out, unfortunately" Kendall commented, causing Logan to let out a small sigh.

"Yeah, I know, but just like you with Pulsewave, I'm curious" Logan replied, causing Kendall to roll his eyes at the comment.

As the blond turned a corner, he saw that he was approaching the barricaded area, and the blond couldn't help but smile slightly when he saw James in the distance. As Kendall approached, he spoke up to Logan once again. "I'm gonna have to go Doc, but thanks for checking up on me."

"Don't mention it, and I'll keep you updated if I learn anything new, or if anything changes. I'll see you later"

"See you later" Kendall replied before he hung up. Putting his phone into his pocket, Kendall was close enough to hear the conversation James was having with who Kendall immediately recognised as his father.

"I told you, James, I'm perfectly fine, and even if I was ill, you constantly being on my back, and asking if I'm ok wouldn't be making a difference. Now, I have some phone calls to make, and I'd appreciate it if you left me alone." Kendall heard, causing the blond's face to drop immediately at how rude Henry was being. As the older man stormed off, Kendall watched as James stood there for a few seconds stunned before the blond finally made his approach.

"Hey, are you ok?" Kendall asked, and as soon as James heard the blond's voice, he turned and pulled the blond into a hug, one that Kendall returned very tightly this time. Nothing was said between them for a couple of minutes as they both held each other, James grateful to be in Kendall's arms once again as the tears began to fall from his eyes. "Hey, it's gonna be ok," Kendall said, pushing out of the hug slightly so that he could wipe the tears falling from James' face.

"I know, I know. I just wish he was less of a jackass" James replied, finally looking at Kendall. "And yet, I can't thank you enough for saving him. Thank you so much for that, I'm never going to be able to repay you"

"You don't have to repay me James" Kendall replied, wiping another tear from the brunet's face. "I'm just happy I was able to help"

"He didn't cause you any trouble, did he? I know he can be difficult"

"Honestly, everything's ok James" Kendall replied, brushing a strand of James' hair out of his eyes. "You don't need to worry about anything, it's all gonna be ok" Kendall continued, wrapping his arms around James once again. This time when the blond went to do so however, he felt a small twinge of pain from his chest, causing him to wince slightly. Kendall thought that he'd done so subtly, but it was enough for James to pick up on it.

"Oh god, are you ok? I didn't even ask if you're ok."

"I'm fine James" Kendall interrupted, pulling James into a hug. "It was just a little fight with Inferno, that's all."

"Just a little fight my arse. Let me take a look" James replied, pushing out from the hug slightly so that he could stare Kendall in the eyes.

"Honestly, I'm fine James, but I think you could do with some rest. Come on, let's go back to mine, it's only a couple blocks from here" Kendall said, causing James to nod as he dropped back into the blond's shoulders for one last hug before they began to walk back to Kendall's.

The journey was filled with silence from the two of them, but that only seemed to bolden the noise coming from the emergency services that were still in the area, acting as a reminder of what had just happened.

When the finally reached Kendall's apartment, the two of them headed straight for the bedroom, and with everything that had happened to James that day, it seemed his body welcomed the rest, with the brunet falling asleep with a matter of seconds.

Kendall, on the other hand, was wide awake, his whole body on alert as he considered what Inferno was going to do next. Now that Diamond Inc was gone, Kendall couldn't get the horrible feeling out of his mind that Inferno's next target would be the slumbering brunet beside him, and it was safe to say that Kendall would stop at nothing to make sure that James stayed safe.

* * *

 **So there we have it, the aftermath of the Diamond Inc attack, and after all of that, James' Dad is still being a complete dick to everyone he comes across! Logan was also fine, but I thought it might be nice if we heard something from him about the whole thing, and he's convinced that nothing is going to change. And of course, James and Kendall had a small moment together, but we'll be getting more of those two in the next chapter!**

 **I want to say a massive thank you to Guest, Winterschild11, RainbowDiamonds and EpicallyObsessed for reviewing the last chapter and I'm so glad that you enjoyed it! You were all right that Henry is a complete arsehole and unfortunately, he doesn't get any better despite everything going on. I hope you all enjoyed the aftermath in this chapter as well, but trust me, we have so much more chaos to come!**

 **Sorry for the lack of uploads on Thursday, but the truth is, after my exam, I went to Spoons and may have gotten slightly drunk. Then I spent Thursday binge watching Gavin and Stacey, but I promise that I'm back on schedule now! So, I will definitely see you on Thursday for the next chapter of Rush and Response! I hope you all have a great week and until then,**

 **TTFN 😃❄**


	23. Chapter 23

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! So, today is kinda a big chapter again, but for a different reason than usual! I'm giving too much away, so let's crack on with it, shall we?**

* * *

Just when Kendall thought that his life couldn't get any more confusing, it seemed to throw him a curveball, which was Kendall standing at his front door at 9:30 on Tuesday, the morning after Diamond Inc fell, faced with a stranger who was claiming some pretty bold things. Really, you couldn't blame Kendall for the way he responded to the news.

"I'm sorry, but what the fuck?" the blond said, half his mind telling him to close to the door while the other was telling him to hear the stranger out.

"I know it's a lot to take in, believe me, I do, but it's true" the stranger replied, sliding their backpack off of one of their shoulder and reaching into it.

Kendall stood there in a state of shock for a few more seconds, the blond's mind still not completely processing what was going on in front of him, but when the stranger gestured for him to grab a piece of paper, the blond couldn't quite help himself. His hands shook as he read over the paper, not quite believing what he was seeing, but he couldn't deny what it was saying.

"But…it's…how? How?" Kendall asked, shaking the piece of paper in his hand as he spoke.

"Look, I understand that this is a big deal, I really do and the last thing I wanted to do was to come here and disrupt your entire life. My phone number is on that piece of paper, so if you do want to chat about everything, then feel free to call me. If you also want to pretend like this never happened, then you can do that as well. I promise I won't be hurt" the stranger said, flashing Kendall a small smile before they began to walk away. Before Kendall could even process what was going on, his mouth kicked into gear.

"Wait, don't leave," the blond said, causing the stranger to stop in their tracks. "I'm sorry, I just wasn't expecting this today. Do you want to come in maybe? So we can talk" Kendall asked, causing a small smile to grow on the stranger's face.

"I'd like that," they said, causing Kendall to push his door open properly, allowing them to walk in ahead of them. As Kendall shut the door, he couldn't help but let out a deep breath at what was happening.

"Do you want a tea, or coffee or something?" Kendall asked as the stranger perched themselves on one of the sofas.

"Just water would be fine thanks" the stranger replied, causing Kendall to nod as he headed over to the kitchen and grabbed a glass and a mug from the cupboard. Pouring some water into the glass, Kendall also turned on the coffee maker, ready to make himself his morning coffee. He definitely needed it with what was about to happen next. "Thank you," the stranger said as Kendall placed the glass of water in front of them, but that didn't seem to stop Kendall from staring at them for slightly too long. When the stranger raised their eyebrow at the blond, he finally snapped out of it, a small blush growing on his cheeks.

"Sorry, it's just a lot to take in. You have…" Kendall began, but he stopped himself from finishing the sentence.

Luckily, the coffee machine beeped at that exact time giving Kendall an excuse to go back into the kitchen where he could compose himself. Well, not completely as the whole area was open plan but it at least gave him a few seconds to steady himself. Coffee poured, Kendall headed back over to the stranger, sitting in the chair so that he could face them.

"So, your name's Katie?" Kendall asked causing Katie to nod.

"Yeah, my name's Katie Porter. Although, I suppose it's really Katie Knight" Katie responded, before dipping her head down to the floor slightly when she saw that Kendall was struggling to hold it together. "Sorry, I didn't mean to"

"You look just like mum," Kendall said, his brain in such a state of shock that he wasn't sure where that even came from. "You have her eyes" Kendall continued, a few tears welling in his eyes as he spoke. "Sorry, I…sorry"

"It's alright. I mean, I'd love to hear more about her and dad. But only if you want to" Katie replied, causing Kendall to nod as he took a large gulp of his coffee.

"I don't really remember much, because I was four when they died" Kendall began, setting the mug down on the table. "But I do remember how excited they were to be having a little girl. Mum kept saying it was going to be a perfect family, with you and I and dad"

"So what happened?" Katie said, causing Kendall to let out a deep breath.

"Dad was killed 5 months before you were born. He was in a road accident. Another driver fell asleep at the wheel and crashed right into him. Mum was devastated after that, we both were, but she was insistent that she was going to have you and that everything was going to be ok. 5 month later, and you were born but mum, she died during…"

"I know" Katie interrupted, her voice filled with what sounded like regret and guilt.

"It's not your fault," Kendall said, reaching over to place a hand onto Katie's leg, causing Katie to flash him a small sad smile.

"Thank you" she replied, placing her hand on top of Kendall's for a brief second before they both let go. The room went silent for a few seconds, both of them reflecting on what was said, and Kendall was the first one to break the silence.

"So, I am curious, how did you find me? I tried looking for you when I was sixteen, but the sisters at the orphanage wouldn't tell me anything. I also tried asking around at the hospital, but they wouldn't say anything either. I looked everywhere for information about you, but I couldn't find anything" Kendall explained, the blond now feeling slightly guilty for not trying harder.

Then again, the blond was sixteen when he tried, and the punishment that the sisters gave him for it was enough to stop him from wanting to look again. Kendall rubbed his hand over his right arm, still feeling the scar that existed there from the incident.

"My parents…adoptive parents were sorting through some paperwork and they weren't aware that I was listening. It was my mum who found the adoption papers, and she started talking to my father about them. When I overheard them talking about it, I went in there and asked them about it. They couldn't lie about anything then, so they told me everything. That my last name was actually Knight, and that somewhere out there I had a brother" Katie began, taking a sip of her water. "I have to admit; it was difficult to find you. Apparently, half the country has the surname of Knight, and my adoptive parents didn't want to help me look. They were insistent that I should be happy with what I had and that I shouldn't look for you, but I couldn't give it up. I searched everywhere as well, but with the orphanage being pretty much entirely frozen, I couldn't get any information out of there. The hospital also refused to answer my questions, so I was left with nothing"

"So what did you do?" Kendall asked, trying to skate over to part about the orphanage being frozen, quite literally in some cases as well.

"I got a DNA test. I forged my mum's signature on the permission slip they wanted her to sign, and I may have also stolen her debit card to pay for it. Once I'd gotten those results back with my actual mum and dad's name on it, I went to city hall and looked at old newspapers to try and find a birth announcement using their names, and that's when I found yours. After a few hours searching on the internet, I was able to find out that you lived here, in Spirit City, and that you worked at Diamond Inc, so I waited until I came here to university."

"Wait, you're studying at the uni?" Kendall asked, causing Katie to nod. "What year are you?"

"First year, just started. And I'm studying Biological Sciences before you ask" Katie replied, causing a small smile to grow on Kendall's face. "But yeah, I've been here for about a week debating whether or not I should come and see you, but after that attack yesterday, I felt like I probably should. I mean, there's no point wasting life when it could end so quickly right?" Katie asked, causing Kendall to nod.

"Yeah, I agree," Kendall replied, taking another sip of his coffee with a small smile on his face. "Well, I have to admit, I'm glad you did come and find me. I mean, it was a big shock don't get me wrong, but I've always wanted to meet my sister. You are the only family I have left" Kendall continued, now more tears welling in his eyes.

As a response, Katie came over and gave the blond a hug, but that only seemed to make Kendall break down further.

"Kendall, are you alright? Who's this?" the two of them heard a voice come from the back of the room, causing them both to pull out of the hug, and glance over at James who was stood at the bedroom door, a quizzical look on his face.

"James, this is my…this is my sister, Katie. Katie, this is-"

"James Diamond!" Katie interrupted, shock growing on her face as she looked at the brunet, who was now shuffling awkwardly.

"Yeah, hi" James waved, slowly progressing further into the room, so that he could stand near Kendall, hoping to offer the blond some support. With James now resting his hand onto Kendall's shoulder, the blond spoke up.

"You know James?" Kendall asked, causing Katie to shrug slightly as she sat down on the sofa.

"Well, I know about his father. Mr Diamond's work on the restoration of biodiversity is astounding" Katie replied, causing James to let out a little chuckle.

"I have to admit, I know nothing about any of that, but I'm sure my father would be pleased to hear it" James replied, squeezing Kendall's shoulder slightly as Kendall drunk the rest of her drink.

"Well, I didn't realise that you had someone here, so I think I'm going to go," Katie said, standing up from the sofa and brushing herself down.

"You don't have to go if you don't want to. I can leave you two to spend some time alone if you want" James replied, but Katie shook her head.

"It's fine, I have a class to get to at 11 anyway" she replied, causing Kendall to nod.

"Alright, and thank you for coming by today," the blond said, pushing himself up from the sofa to give Katie a hug. "And I'd like to get to know you better if that's possible"

"I think it can be arranged" Katie replied, causing a smile to grow on Kendall's face as the two of them walked to the door "Well, it was nice to meet you, and I'll see you soon?"

"Yeah, see you soon" Kendall responded, waving Katie away as she walked down the staircase. A

s soon as she was out of view, Kendall closed the door before sinking down to his knees, holding his head in his hands.

"Hey, are you ok?" James asked, crouching down in front of the blond and wrapping his arms around Kendall to provide him with some comfort.

"I just met my sister" Kendall replied, pulling his hands away from his face, where James saw the tears falling. "I never thought I'd ever know who she is, let alone meet her, but she's here James, she's real" Kendall continued, a small smile growing on his face. "I have a family," the blond said finally, before breaking down into tears of joy.

James was quick to pull Kendall in tight, with the blond wrapping his arms back around James as he cried into his shoulder. James wasn't quite sure how to respond in this situation, so he decided it was probably best if he didn't say anything while Kendall let his emotions out. They must have been on the floor like that for a couple of minutes before Kendall finally collected himself.

"Sorry, you didn't need to see that," the blond said, causing James to shake his head as he pulled out of the hug slightly so that he could look the blond in the eyes.

"Hey, it's completely fine. You just met your sister Kendall; I think you're allowed to show some emotions over it. Besides, it's better than just telling me your fine" James replied, helping Kendall off the floor. "Do you want some breakfast or something?"

"I can do it" Kendall replied, but James shook his head as he headed into the kitchen.

"No, let me do it. You're dealing with stuff right now, and it'll give you a chance to think about it"

"You're dealing with stuff as well James," Kendall replied, causing James to glance back at him. "Diamond Inc only fell about 10 hours ago, so you're still gonna be processing it"

"I'm fi-" James began before realising he was going to do the exact same thing that Kendall and his father usually did, which was claim everything was 'fine.' Letting out a deep breath, James spoke again. "You're right, I am still trying to process everything, and it's going to be a big change not going to the building. But at the end of the day Kendall, thankfully nobody was hurt, thanks to you, and it was only a building. Sure, I had lots of memories there, but I've got to remind myself that it's not the location that matters, but who it was with" James replied, glancing down at the floor slightly before he opened up Kendall's fridge and pulled out some bits. "Now, I've said my piece, so it's time for you to talk about your feelings" James stated, turning to glance at Kendall, who was watching him dot about the kitchen.

"I just shared my feelings didn't I?" Kendall asked, gesturing his head towards the door, causing James to roll his eyes.

"I'm not just talking about that; I'm talking about everything else Kendall. Surely, you must feel something about Diamond Inc collapsing or Inferno attacking,"

"I'm ok James" Kendall replied, causing James to spin around to him, with a death glare. That was enough for Kendall to let out a deep breath. "I guess I'm just a little worried about you. Inferno said to me that his next target are 'the ones they love most' and my gut is telling me that that means you" Kendall began, and once he'd told James that small bit of information, everything else seemed to follow. "And I suppose I'm worried that I'm not going to be able to save you if anything did happen. Which, I know, it's probably not what you want to hear, but I just don't know how I'm going to beat Inferno. I mean, he's made out of fire for god sakes, and I'm trying to use ice to defeat him, but he just melts it away immediately. I got lucky with the sprinkler system in Diamond Inc, but I was only just able to defeat him then, and he still got away and destroyed the entire building. I don't know James, maybe I'm just worrying too much about this whole thing, but I just can't help it. It's like I've got the weight of the city resting on my shoulders, and I don't know if I can live up to that expectation. I mean, I wasn't able to stop Switchblade either, and now she's killed four people in a park and I'm just worried that everything going to get worse and worse and I'm not going to be able to do anything about it"

By the time Kendall had stopped talking, James had already pulled him into a tight hug, as the blond let more tears fall from his eyes.

"Hey, it's alright, it's ok" James soothed, rubbing Kendall's back as he spoke. "I believe in you Kendall; you're going to be able to stop them. And sure, things are bad at the moment, but everything will get better with time, you just need to give it a chance. You're going to be able to stop Inferno and Switchblade; I know you are, but you've got to stop putting all of this pressure on yourself. Everyone is here to help you, and you need to know that you can rely on other's for support." James continued, causing Kendall to nod into him.

"But what about you?" Kendall said, pulling out the hug slightly. "I'm so scared that I'm not going to be able to protect you"

"But I know that you'll be doing your best to, Kendall," James replied, some tears forming in his own eyes. "You're not going to be able to save everyone; I understand that, and I know the risk with the whole thing."

"I won't let anything happen to you, I promise," Kendall said, but James just shook his head as he rubbed Kendall's back.

"You can't promise that Kendall" James replied, tilting the blond's head up so that they were looking each other in the eyes. "But what you can promise is, that if anything does happen to me, you don't lose yourself in grief. This city may be able to cope without Blizzard, but it's not going to be able to cope without Kendall Knight" James replied, causing Kendall to nod as he grabbed hold of James' hand.

"James?"

"Yeah?" James said, causing Kendall to squeeze his hand.

"You mouthed something to me yesterday, and I just wanted you to know that I love you too" Kendall replied, causing a small grin to grow on James' face as he crouched down in front of the blond, and placed a gentle kiss on his lips.

Sure, they'd just have a whole conversation about all of Kendall's doubts, worries and fears, but at that moment, the two of them both knew that, with love, they could get through anything.

* * *

 **So there we have it! Katie has been introduced into the story and into Kendall's life! I wonder what mystery and wonder this is going to bring along with it! We also had Kendall finally confess a lot of his feelings to James about the whole situation and everything that going on, which I'm sure a few of you will be glad to see!**

 **I want to say a massive thank you to Winterschild11, Guest, RainbowDiamonds and EpicallyObsessed for reviewing the last chapter, and I'm so glad that you enjoyed it! You all seemed to love the 'Bad Superhero' note, which I have to admit, I thought was pretty funny as well, and you all still think that Mr Diamond is a dick, which to be fair, you're not wrong. There is however more to come with that in the future, but I won't give to much away! Also, I have to admit, your appreciation for Spoons made me so happy, and I'm glad that were on the same page about how great it is or was in some cases!**

 **Anyway, I hope you all have a great week and if you haven't already, please check out the test chapter I uploaded called Colony! I will see you on Thursday for the next chapter of Rush and Response but until then,**

 **TTFN 😃❄**


	24. Chapter 24

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! I don't really have a lot to say here today, so let's crack on shall we?**

* * *

As James walked into the Dispatch Weekly building on Friday, he couldn't help but let out a sigh. It had been nearly a week since the attack on Diamond Inc, and apart from the lack of the building, there was no sign that it had actually happened.

All of the rubble had been cleared away from the street, and the whole city seemed to be back in its normal routine. Hell, even Kendall had been going back to work since Wednesday, which to be fair, didn't surprise James one bit. His dad was all about business, after all, so he'd want to get it back up and running as soon as possible.

Today, however, was James' first half-day back on the job, with Griffin being kind enough to allow James to stay at home for most of the week, provided that he's written an article about the attack by the time he'd come back, and it was safe to say that that article was difficult to write. Trying to slander his boyfriend was difficult enough as it is, but with Kendall now having saved his father, it was damned near impossible.

To be fair, if Kendall hadn't helped him with the article, James would have never got it done, but luckily, the blond was with him, telling him what to say and encouraging him to get it written. A small smile grew on James' face as he wiped his ID card and walked through the barriers. It must have been bizarre for Kendall to have to write so negatively about himself, but the blond did do a good job with it.

The two of them focused on the fact that Blizzard had left the building collapse, as well as the formal complaint that Henry had lodged. After all, it wasn't like Griffin wanted to hear about the people that Kendall had saved, no, it all had to be bad press. Stepping into the lift, James pushed the button for his floor and waited for the door closed. Just before they did, Camille slipped into the lift with him, flashing him a small smile as she did.

"You alright?" she asked, causing James to let out a soft nod.

"Yeah, I'm alright" James replied, causing Camille to turn to him fully. Raising an eyebrow at him, James let out a soft sigh. "Honestly, I'm alright. I mean, I've had the week to 'recover' from it, and I'm feeling ok"

"I can't imagine what it must have been like, seeing all that happen. Watching it on the news was bad enough, but to actually be there, and scared for your dad's life must have been horrible"

"Thanks for dragging it all back up" James replied, letting out a little chuckle so that Camille knew he was joking.

Slightly.

"Sorry" Camille muttered, causing James to bump her slightly with his elbow as if to say it was all right. "But, if you do need to talk to anyone, you know I'm here for you don't you"

"Thank you, Camille, that's really nice of you" James replied, flashing her a smile just as the doors opened. As the two of them headed to their desks, James spoke up again. "I've been talking everything over with Kendall a lot, and he's been really helpful with it"

"Kendall eh?" Camille replied, causing James to blush slightly as he nodded. "And how are you two getting on?" She asked, causing James' blush to deepen.

"Yeah, really well" was all James replied with, as they both took their seats. As soon as they got their stuff sorted, Camille swivelled around to face James.

"You've got to give me more than 'really well'" she commanded, causing a small smile to grow on James' face at the fact that Camille was back to her usual self.

"We said 'I love you' earlier in the week," James said, causing Camille to swat James out of reflex.

"And you didn't tell me?" She said as James rubbed his arm, a slight stinging coming from where she'd whacked him.

"I haven't been in all week"

"We can text!" Camille replied, causing James to roll his eyes. "So when can I meet him?"

"Um, never?" James replied, causing Camille to smack his arm again. "I don't need you scaring him away" James continued, letting out a little chuckle.

"Please, if he's said 'I love you' then nothing can scare him away. He's already faced the scariest part which was you" Camille replied, causing James to mock offence externally.

Internally, however, James was loving the banter between the two of them. It was nice to just forget everything that had happened for a brief moment and just have fun with a friend. Of course, that all came to an end when the two of them heard shouting.

"James, in here now!" the boss shouted, causing silence to cover the floor.

"That can't be good," Camille said to James, causing the brunet to roll his eyes.

"Hopefully he won't kill me" James replied, causing Camille to let out a little chuckle.

"I have the police on speed dial just in case he tries"

"You're a true friend" James replied before he walked away from his desk.

The brunet could feel the eyes of the entire floor on him as he walked today's Griffin's office, and it definitely helped to unsettle his stomach. Taking a deep breath, James opened the door to his boss' office, slightly scared to close it behind him.

* * *

' _He liked it'_ Kendall let out a sigh at the message he'd received from James, saying that the article they'd written went down ok. It was safe to say that the blond was slightly worried about James returning to work today, especially with what Griffin is like, so the news that everything was ok definitely helped settle his nerves.

Hearing that Logan was returning to the lab, Kendall slotted his phone into his pocket, pretending to get back on with his work.

"Well, it turns out that they can't outrightly give us the supercomputer with the climate simulator on it, as 'other labs need it as well' but we are allowed to use it provided we book a time slot first" Logan said as he walked into the lab, causing Kendall to nod as he turned towards the doctor.

"Well, that's what we expected at least" Kendall replied, causing Logan to let out a sigh.

"Yeah, but it's not the news we wanted," Logan said, heading over to his desk where he dropped into his chair. "It's definitely different to what we're used too" the doctor continued, causing Kendall to nod.

It was different indeed, with Logan and Kendall working in one of the Spirit City university's postgraduate labs for the 'time being.' The lab itself had most of the equipment that they'd usually use when analysing glacial samples and the such, but with their research now focusing on getting the repeat location tests ready, they were lacking a few things, mainly a supercomputer.

"Come on doc, it's not that bad. At least we didn't end up in Lower Warren" Kendall said, causing Logan to let out a little chuckle while Kendall sat in the seat next to him. "From the complaints I've heard, they hardly have any of the equipment they need"

"God help the social sciences with their lack of clipboards" Logan muttered under his breath, causing Kendall to let out a little chuckle. "How are you finding everything?" Logan asked, causing Kendall to let out a little shrug.

"I'm coping. Although I have to admit, it's a bit of a blast from the past being here, as it was only about a year, two years ago when I was doing my dissertation research up here" Kendall replied, glancing around the lab as he spoke. The blond pretty much knew it like the back of his hand, so he wasn't having as much as a hard time as Logan was.

"And how's James coping with everything?" Logan asked, causing Kendall's face to become consumed with a blush.

"James?" Kendall asked, causing Logan to roll his eyes.

"Yeah James, the guy you've been seeing" Logan replied, causing Kendall's blush to deepen. "I heard you say his name that time I caught you making plans with him on your phone. I then saw the two of you together on Tv after the Diamond Inc attack right after we'd chatted on the phone, so it didn't take a genius to figure out it was James Diamond" Logan continued, Kendall's face completely red by this point.

"Yeah, he's alright" Kendall began, taking a deep breath to try and calm himself slightly. "It's definitely been difficult for him, with everything that happened but as the weeks gone on, it's started to get easier for him. I've tried to do what I could for him, but there's only so much I can say and do, you know"

"I can imagine whatever you've done for him has been massively helpful. If I were in a situation like that, I'd just want someone to talk to about it all, so that I didn't have to keep it to myself" Logan replied, causing Kendall to nod, as that was exactly what he'd been doing for James.

Plus of course, James was also doing that for him, so the two of them were both helping each other.

"Speaking of which, how are you two getting on?" Logan asked, causing Kendall's blush to come back again.

"Yeah, we're getting on really well" Kendall answered, causing Logan to raise an eyebrow at him as if wanting more information. "It's going really well, and I even said that I loved him the other day. It's probably the happiest that I've been in a while" Kendall continued, causing Logan to smile back at him.

"That's good to hear. You deserve to be happy" Logan replied, causing a small smile to grow on Kendall's face. "Well, we best get back to work. These glaciers aren't gonna prepare themselves" Logan said, causing Kendall to nod as the two of them pushed themselves up from their chairs and headed back over to their desks.

Still, Kendall couldn't wipe the smile off of his face, as what he'd said to Logan was true.

Despite the situation with Switchblade and Inferno, and despite the fear that something might happen to James, this was truly the happiest Kendall had been in a while. He'd found someone that he truly loved, and wanted to be with, and he'd made contact with his long lost sister.

Things were definitely looking up for Kendall, and the blond only hoped that the same could be said for Blizzard soon.

* * *

James let his head lull back in his chair, slightly frustrated with what he was hearing at that current moment.

"Mr Diamond, this attack was very serious, and the threats we have against you and your son are not to be taken lightly," Carlos said to Henry, as the three of them were currently in the police station discussing what Inferno had said.

It had taken all week for Carlos to finally arrange a meeting with Henry, since the older man didn't want to even have one, and that was definitely showing now, by Henry's attitude towards the whole thing.

"That's why I've hired private security to look after us" Henry replied, causing James to look over at him.

"I'm sorry, what?" James asked, glancing at Carlos who was also in shock.

"I've hired private security to accompany us wherever we go since you keep harping on about how 'big' of a threat this Inferno is. So, from now on, you'll have Ricardo with you constantly"

"Ricardo?" "Mr Diamond, this really isn't necessary" Both James and Carlos spoke at the same time, causing James to glance over at Carlos briefly, before turning his attention back to his father.

"Yes, James, Ricardo" Henry began, nodding his head towards the window, causing James to look over that way, where a rather tall, buff man was standing. Turning his attention back to his father, Henry spoke up again. "And I believe this is necessary Chief Garcia. After all, you were the one who suggested we have people assigned to us"

"Yes, but I meant police officers, not private security" Carlos replied, the Latino feeling like his position was being threatened and attacked slightly from Henry's lack of faith in him.

"I don't see the difference. Other than the fact that these private security officers will be able to accompany us all day, whereas your officers couldn't"

"If we would have had a discussion about these things, then they could have been arranged. I'm telling you Mr Diamond; private security won't be necessary. The SCPD will be able to handle this issue"

"Is that true though, Chief Garcia?" Henry replied, his tone stern as if to already suggest the answer. James rolled his eyes as his father began to speak again. "I believe that I filed a formal complaint against Blizzard, and from what I could tell, nothing has come of it. Now, since you haven't taken my word seriously, I saw fit to hire somebody that would. Somebody that would have no issue doing what I said"

"You can't be serious" James spoke up, causing Henry to look over at him, his eyebrow raised. "Blizzard saved your life. He stopped you from being crushed under the weight of the building, and now your acting like a petulant child because he got you out of the panic room"

"He aggressively dragged me out of that room, without my consent. If he wasn't careful, he could have caused me serious injury"

"And if he hadn't, you would have been killed dad" James snapped back, his tone filled with gravity. "If he hadn't had 'dragged' you out of that room, then your stupid, childish ass would have been crushed under the weight of the collapsing building, and you wouldn't be sat here, acting like a spoilt brat that isn't getting his way" James let out a sigh, before turning to Carlos, who was still in a state of shock. "Chief, whatever you can do to protect us from this threat would be massively appreciated, and I'm sure that you will try your best to ensure our safety. As for the private security," James began, now turning his attention back to his father. "I will keep Ricardo around for the time being, because I for one actually understand how serious this threat is. But don't you dare sit there and slander Blizzard's name, after all, he's done for us. If it wasn't for him, then you'd be dead at the moment. Being only remember for your business accomplishments, and not because you actually care for anyone" James finished, pushing himself up from the chair.

"James wait," Henry said, but the brunet just ignored it, walking straight out of the room they were in.

Of course, as soon as he was outside of the room, Ricardo walked up to him, causing James to roll his eyes as he headed for the closest fast food restaurant.

It was safe to say that after this, he needed to indulge in something, and Kendall was currently busy.

* * *

"No way!" Kendall laughed, Katie nodding along with side him.

"It's completely true. And the best part is, that we didn't even get caught" Katie replied, in laughter as well as she told Kendall the story of the time she set up a poker ring in her school.

"You've certainly had an interesting childhood" Kendall commented, taking a sip of his coffee as Katie nod.

"You could definitely say that" Katie replied, before taking a sip of her own drink. "But what about you? I feel like I've been talking about myself loads, so now it's your time to tell a few stories" she continued, causing the two of them to go silent for few seconds as Kendall thought back to his past.

He certainly didn't have any stories as exciting as that, and the ones that he did have, he certainly couldn't tell.

"I don't really have any" Kendall said, letting out a soft sigh before taking another sip of his coffee. "I was a pretty boring child to be fair. I was always working, either on schoolwork or actual work to try and earn some money and when I wasn't, I was either at school or sleeping" Kendall continued, glancing down at the table slightly. "Sorry I don't have anything interesting to share" he added, causing Katie to let out a little chuckle.

"And yet, now you're working at Diamond Inc, so I suppose it all paid off in the end" Katie replied, causing Kendall to let out a little chuckle.

"I suppose it did. Although with everything that's happening, I don't know if that's a good thing"

"Oh, it definitely is" Katie replied, causing Kendall to quirk an eyebrow at her.

"You certainly seem to know a lot about them and the company," Kendall said, causing Katie to shrug.

"My dad was a big fan of reading about business news. He'd rave about what was happening sometimes over tea, so I just picked a lot of it up subconsciously. When I started looking into Biological Sciences, their name seemed to come up everywhere. I mean, they are the world leading company in these things"

"World leading in terms of being a jackass" Kendall mumbled under his breath, causing Katie to quirk an eyebrow at him. Letting out a little chuckle, Kendall spoke up again. "Sorry, Mr Diamond is a bit of a character should we say," the blond said, causing a smug smile to grow on Katie's face.

"And yet, you're dating his son" she quipped, before taking a sip of her coffee to hide her smile.

"What is it with everyone wanting to know about my love life?" Kendall asked, rolling his eyes causing Katie to let out a little chuckle.

"Well, for me, it's a sibling thing, but I can't speak about the rest of them" she replied, causing Kendall's heart to skip a beat for a second at her words.

Kendall was still getting used to the fact that Katie was his sister, so whenever she said stuff like that, Kendall always felt a sense of panic and warmth spread through his chest.

"So, how'd you two meet?" she asked, causing Kendall to let out a little chuckle.

"Can you believe it was at a coffee shop?" Kendall replied, causing Katie to quirk an eyebrow at him.

"Really?"

"Honestly, he came in one night struggling with an article he was writing, and I offered him some help. Since then, we've been seeing each other."

"Wow," Katie said before taking a sip of her coffee. "Your story really are boring" she continued, causing Kendall to tut and roll his eyes as she let out a joyful laugh, one that Kendall couldn't help but share in the end. The moment was cut short however when Katie's phone pinged. "Sorry, that's the alert for my lecture, I should get going," she said, causing Kendall to nod as the two of them pushed themselves up for their chairs. "But it was really nice chatting with you. We should definitely do it again sometime"

"I'd like that" Kendall replied, taking one last sip of his coffee. "And I promise I'll try to think of some interesting stories for next time" he continued, causing them both to let out a little chuckle before they parted ways. Kendall couldn't help but watch as Katie walked away, the blond completely overcome with a sense of…pride? Astonishment? Gratitude?

As Katie disappeared out of sight, Kendall realised it was all three, proud of how she'd turned out, astonished by the fact that they were finally reunited and grateful that it had actually happened.

* * *

As James walked into the coffee shop where Kendall worked, the first that happened was the two of them making eye contact, and James could see from the look in Kendall's eyes, the blond was questioning the massive guy that was currently stood behind James. Rolling his eyes, James made his way over to his usual booth, where Kendall had come over to greet him.

"Hey, you alright?" James asked, giving Kendall a quick kiss on the cheek before he sat down, causing a blush to grow on Kendall's face.

"Yeah, I'm fine, just curious about the guy that's giving me evils from over by the door" Kendall replied, causing James to shake his head as he began to pull his laptop out of his bag.

"That's Ricardo, my own private security guard" James began, his tone completely laced with annoyance, causing a small smile to grow on Kendall's face. "My father thought it would be best if I had someone looking out for me constantly because you know, he's taking this Inferno threat so seriously now" James continued, glancing up at Kendall, who had a small smile on his face. "It's not funny"

"But it kinda is though" Kendall replied, as he began to pour James a cup of coffee. "I mean, you were so annoyed that your dad wasn't taking this seriously, and now that he is, you're annoyed by that as well"

"I don't need you to outline the irony of the situation" James snipped, causing Kendall to slide into the booth, opposite his boyfriend.

"Seriously though James, I'm glad that someone is looking out for you, especially when I can't. I mean, that was one of my biggest fears" Kendall stated, causing James' anger to dissipate slightly.

"I know, and I'm sorry I snapped at you" James began, reaching over to grab Kendall's hand. "It's just, you know what my dad's like, and after the conversation, I had with him earlier, I've just been a little bit on edge. Tell you what, why don't you come back to mine tonight, and I'll tell you all about it" James said, causing a small smile to grow on Kendall's face.

"That sounds great, as I've got some stuff to tell you as well" the blond replied, causing James to nod as Kendall glanced around. "I've got to get back to work."

"I'll be right here," James said, causing Kendall to lean over the table and place a chaste kiss onto James' lips before he pushed himself out of the booth and got back to work.

With Kendall gone, James let out a sigh, trying his best not to let his father get to him as he continued his work. After all, the added protection certainly couldn't help, although James knew that it wouldn't compare to what Kendall could offer him.

* * *

 **So there we have it! James is back to work after the attack, and Camille was being super nice to him about it! We also had Kendall and Logan having a chat about the whole situation, with Logan asking about how he and James are getting on. James' dad's still being a dick, with him now having hired a private security guard to keep James safe just so spite Carlos, and Kendall and Katie have started to bond a little bit more with the two of them meeting up for coffee and chatting. And of course, to round off the chapter, Kames had their usual meet in the coffee shop, with Kendall agreeing to go round James for the evening!**

 **I want to say a massive thank you to Guest, Winterschild11, RainbowDiamonds and EpicallyObsessed for reviewing the last chapter and I'm so glad you liked it, especially the Katie reveal! So, yeah, I thought it was about time that I introduced her into the story, especially considering that stuff is going down! You also loved the 'I love you' reveal as well, which I'm so glad to hear, as I felt like it was the right time for them to finally say it!**

 **I will see you on Thursday for the next chapter of Rush and Response, and I hope you all have a great week! But until then,**

 **TTFN 😃❄**


	25. Chapter 25

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! Another big chapter for you today, so let's crack on shall we?**

* * *

As James opened the door to his apartment, both he and Kendall noticed how Ricardo loitered by the doorframe.

"So, do you want to come in or anything? Will you need anywhere to sleep?" James asked the private security officer, causing Ricardo to shake his head.

"I'll wait out here, thanks. Just so you're aware, in about 3 hours, someone will come to replace me while I rest for the night, so don't be alarmed if you hear anything" Ricardo replied, causing James to nod his head, as he let Kendall into the apartment.

"Well, if you need anything, just let me know" James added, causing Ricardo to nod before James walked into his apartment and shut the front door, albeit awkwardly.

With the door closed, James turned around to see Kendall pouring two glasses of wine. "I'm guessing you need one of these?" the blond asked, causing James to nod as he quickly crossed the space to the kitchen.

"More than you'd expect" James replied, picking up the glass of wine and taking a big sip of it before the two of them headed over to James' living area. Feeling slightly hot, the brunet slid the balcony door open, allowing a breeze to flow through the apartment.

"So, you wanted to tell me about what your dad did?" Kendall asked, causing James to shake his head as he plopped down on the sofa next to Kendall.

"You go first. You said you wanted to tell me something, and frankly, I could do with the distraction" James replied, causing Kendall to place his hand onto James' knee.

"You sure?" Kendall asked, causing James to nod.

"Honestly. Now, tell me about your meeting with Katie, how'd it go?" James replied, causing a small smile to grow on Kendall's face.

"Really well actually. We chatted about our pasts for a little bit, and she told me this story about how she'd ran a poker ring at her school before they shut it down."

"No way," James said, letting out a little chuckle as Kendall nodded.

"Yeah, and it turned out that she lived in Minneapolis, so she had to travel far to find out that information on me" Kendall continued, letting out a sigh as he took a sip of his wine.

"What's up?" James asked, now resting his hand onto Kendall's knee.

"It's just…Am I a bad brother for not trying harder to find her?" Kendall asked, causing James to shake his head immediately as he put his wine glass down on the table.

"Don't be ridiculous, how can you say that?" James replied, causing Kendall to shrug, taking another of his wine g before he placed it on the table next to James.

"It's just Katie went to all that effort trying to find me. Getting a blood test done, and then searching through years of newspaper records to try and find my name. I just feel guilty because I didn't do any of that"

"But you couldn't have done" James replied, causing Kendall to glance up at him. "I mean, you couldn't have had a blood test done. One because of the whole superpowers thing" James began, lowering his voice for that last part. "And two because it only would have told you who your parents were, which you already know. Besides, the hospital wouldn't have indulged that information to you, hell, they didn't even tell Katie about you. As for the newspapers, looking through those wouldn't have done you any good, as Katie probably wouldn't have even been in there, and if she was, she would have been under a different name, so you wouldn't have known anyway" James continued, causing Kendall to let out a sigh as he nodded.

"You're right. And I did try when I was sixteen, but no one would tell me anything anyway" Kendall replied, causing a small smile to grow on James' face as he patted Kendall's knee.

"See, there was nothing you could have done, so I wouldn't let it get to you. Instead, I would make the most of the time you have with her now" James continued, causing Kendall to lean up and place a kiss onto his lips.

"Thanks, James" the blond replied, causing a smile to grow on James' face as he squeezed Kendall's leg. As the blond reached for his wine glass, he spoke up again.

"Oh, I should also warn you that Doctor Mitchell knows about us. He was asking about you today" Kendall said, before taking a sip of his wine.

"And what was the good doctor asking about?" James replied, causing Kendall to let out a little chuckle.

"Everything really. How things are going between us, and how you're coping with everything."

"It's funny, I had the same conversation with Camille, a friend from work" James replied, causing Kendall to raise an eyebrow at him.

"And what did you say? How are things going between us?" Kendall asked, a grin growing on his face.

"I'd say that things are going really well. You could even say lovingly" James replied, causing Kendall to roll his eyes as he placed his glass back onto the table.

"You are cheesy, you know that right?" the blond asked, causing James to let out a little chuckle.

"But you love me for it" James replied, causing a grin to grow on Kendall's face.

"I do, I really do. Well, that and your impeccable ass" the blond replied, causing James to let out a hearty laugh as he pushed Kendall down on the sofa before straddling him as he leant down for a kiss.

Before their lips could connect properly however, Kendall's stomach began to rumble, causing a blush to grow on the blond's cheeks while James let out a chuckle.

"Sorry, I didn't realise how hungry I actually was," Kendall said, causing James to lean down and place a chaste kiss onto Kendall's lips.

"I'll cook you something. Want anything in particular?" James replied, causing Kendall to let out a little chuckle as James climbed off of him.

"I could get used to you being domesticated" Kendall replied, causing James to pick up a pillow and throw it at Kendall, the blond letting out a laugh as the pillow landed on him. "And I'll eat whatever you cook" Kendall continued, causing James to nod as he headed to the kitchen, taking his wine with him. As James rummaged through his pots and pans, Kendall spoke up again. "So, why don't you tell me about what happened with your dad"

"I think it's easier to tell you what didn't happen with my dad" James replied, pulling out a large frying pan and some mince from the fridge. With his back to the blond, James continued. "He undermined Chief Garcia just because the chief didn't take his complaint seriously, he hired private security for me without even consulting me about it first just to get to me and _and_ he insulted you, by saying that you and I quote 'aggressively dragged him out of the room, without his consent.' Can you believe that? After you saved his life, and he's slandering you because of it. It was safe to say that I was not happy with him one bit, so after shouting at him and calling him a spoilt brat and a petulant child, I stormed out of the room" James continued, putting everything down for a brief second as he let out a sigh. "Do you think I was too harsh? I mean, sure he deserved every word of it, but I don't know, maybe I shouldn't have shouted at him like that. What do you think?" James asked, and for a brief second, the room descended into silence.

That was until of course, James heard a glass smashing, causing him to turn around, where the colour completely drained from his face at the sight that greeted him.

"Oh, don't mind me, you continue your little story," Inferno said, the supervillain stood there with Kendall in a headlock, with one hand covering the blond's mouth. "I love hearing about other's family drama, especially since your father killed mine"

"What are you doing here?" James asked, struggling to find his voice due to the fright that was coursing through his system.

"Isn't it obvious? I'm here to kill the one you love most" Inferno replied, tightening his hold around Kendall's neck, causing the blond to squirm in pain. "I've seen you and him with each other a lot, so I could only figure that you two must mean something to each other. Especially with all your coffee dates and sleepovers" Inferno replied, tightening his hold on Kendall's neck once again, causing tears to start falling from James' eyes uncontrollably.

"Please, don't hurt him. You don't need to hurt him" James pleaded, causing a wicked laugh and an evil grin to come from Inferno.

"Oh, I'm not going to hurt him." Inferno began, backing towards James' patio, walking through the open door. "His death will be quick and painless. And then, once I'm done with him, I'm going to kill you. After all, you are what your father loves most…well, probably second to most, but I can't exactly bring his entire business down as quickly as I can kill you" Inferno finished and before James even had chance to react or say anything, Kendall was thrown through the glass railing off of the balcony.

"KENDALL NO!" James screamed as the blond disappeared, before falling to his knees, the brunet trying to keep himself together.

As Inferno approached him, James couldn't help but shake his head as he wiped the tears from his eyes. "You have no idea what you've just done" James gritted out, causing a grin to grow on Inferno's face.

"Oh, what are you going to do about it? I would love it if you put up a fight" the villain replied, slowly getting closer and closer to the shaken brunet.

Still, James had the one thing that Inferno didn't.

Hope.

* * *

In a split second, Kendall went from not being able to breathe properly to being thrown off of a balcony, so it was safe to say, it took the blond a few seconds to adjust to his current predicament.

Which was that he was plummeting towards the ground pretty quickly.

The panic was there from the offset, but as Kendall saw Inferno step away from the edge of the balcony, the realisation that Inferno was now going after James set in, and that caused Kendall to try and focus his mind. The first thing the blond did was to reach around the back of his head, where thankfully, his mask was located.

Luckily, Kendall had been prepared enough to have his suit on under his clothes and with the mask now over his face, concealing his identity, Kendall found himself spinning in mid-air so that he was now facing towards the ground, before creating a massive ice slide beneath him, about halfway down the building. The blond hit it with a thud, causing the wind to be knocked out of him, but Kendall didn't let that deter him, as he pushed himself up to his feet.

Without even thinking about it, Kendall found himself gaining momentum, and before long, the blond was skating back up to James' apartment, ready to face the supervillain once and for all as anger coursed through his veins. As soon as Kendall was back up to James' apartment, he stripped out of the rest of his clothes, throwing them to the side as he walked back into the apartment, where James was currently being choked out against the wall, and Ricardo was laid out by the front door.

"Hey, why don't you pick on someone your own size" Kendall spoke up, causing Inferno to bash James' head against the fridge before dropping him, the brunet falling to the ground unconscious.

"Well, if it isn't Blizzard. Come to get your ass kicked once again?" Inferno replied, turning to face the blond, fire now radiating from his skin.

"Not this time. This time, you've crossed the line."

"Oh, does this sad sack mean something special to you?" Inferno asked, causing Kendall to let out a little growl as Inferno kicked James' legs, the brunet still unconscious. "Oh, he does, doesn't he?"

"Let's just say I'm sick of you terrorising his family" Kendall replied, causing Inferno to let out a wicked laugh.

"Well, if you'd let me finish, I'd be done terrorising them pretty soon"

"I can't let you do that" Kendall replied, causing a grin to grow on Inferno's face.

"Then try to stop me," the supervillain said, before launching a fireball in Kendall's direction.

The blond was quick to dodge it, watching as the fireball shattered a piece of James' glass as it flew out of the building. Glancing back to Inferno, the blond was greeted with the sight of the supervillain storming towards him, causing Kendall to dash out of his way, firing an ice shard as he did. As expected, the ice shard melted as soon as it got close to Inferno, but Kendall knew that it couldn't let that stop him this time, this had to be the last time to the two of them fought for the sake of both James and his arrogant father.

Instead of launching an ice shard this time, Kendall found himself charging towards the villain, jumping over the sofa as he tackled the villain to the ground, the two of them crashing into the dining room table that James had. The object crashed under the weight, Kendall now straddling the villain as he began to lay punches into his face since Kendall knew that he'd have to go old school for this one.

Inferno struggled beneath him, as Kendall wailed on the villain's face, but unfortunately, the villain was able to grab a piece of the destroyed wooden table, using it to whack Kendall over the head with. The blond fell to the side at the impact, causing Inferno to now straddle him, with his knees over Kendall's arms to stop the blond form doing what he'd previously done.

"I believe we've been in this position before" Inferno spoke up, his grin creepily bearing down on Kendall as the blond struggled.

"Yeah, and I believe I got out of it last time as well" Kendall replied, ready to headbutt the villain again.

This time, however, the villain leaned back, avoiding the headbutt before grabbing Kendall's head and forcing it back into the ground, now holding it in place. Kendall ignored the pain that was radiated from the back of his head as he tried to figure out what to do next. The only things that were free were his legs, but at the moment, they were pretty useless considering that Inferno was straddling his chest.

Moving his feet around, Kendall felt a loose piece of wood off to the side, and with some skilled manoeuvring, Kendall hoped he'd be able to use his knees to hit Inferno with it, enough to cause a distraction, but that was exactly what Kendall needed at the moment. Acting out of impulse Kendall spoke up.

"Why are you doing this?" the blond asked, his right foot moving to try and reach the piece of wood. "Why are you so determined to destroy the Diamond Family?" Kendall asked, trying his free his arms as he spoke so that he could distract Inferno from what was happening behind him.

"Why? Why? Because the Diamond Family took everything from me!" Inferno raged; his teeth gritted as he came right down in front of Kendall's face.

"You keep saying this, but what did they actually do?"

"They killed my entire family! They pathetic experiments caused the death of my entire village, poisoning the water supply we drank from, so they need to pay for what they did"

"I'm so sorry," Kendall said, feeling slightly guilty for the villain. He knew the pain losing your family could bring, but clearly, the two of them chose to process it differently.

"I don't need your pity. I need justice for their deaths"

"Justice and vengeance are two very different things. What you're seeking is vengeance!"

"I don't care what you call it, I just want them to suffer like I did" Inferno replied, and by this point, Kendall had the piece of wood in between his legs, ready to strike.

"Then I don't feel sorry for this" Kendall replied, bring his knees up, so that the piece of wood rammed itself into Inferno's back, a small sharp piece breaking through the skin, causing Inferno to let out a grunt of pain as Inferno's grip on Kendall loosened slightly.

Taking the opportunity, Kendall was able to free one of his arms, quickly swinging his fist towards Inferno's face, causing the villain to stumble to the side, much like the blond did when he was hit. Pushing the villain off of himself completely, Kendall jumped to his feet, glancing towards the kitchen, where he noticed that James was no longer laid unconscious at the bottom of the fridge.

Kendall's distraction, however, caused Inferno to get the better of him once again, the villain kicking Kendall in the back, his superior strength causing the blond to go flying towards the island in James' kitchen. Kendall stomach slamming into it, the blond was winded once again, and this time, it was enough for Inferno to pick Kendall up from the back of the neck and force him back down into the island, causing it to crumble under Kendall as he fell to the floor.

The blond tried his best to get back to his feet, but Inferno gave him no opportunity, grabbing Kendall by the neck once again as he threw the blond back towards the living room, Kendall now going crashing into James' TV before falling to the ground.

"No more distractions or opportunities for escape this time Blizzard. It's time you finally die" Inferno said as he crossed the space between the two of them, picking Kendall up by the throat as he began to choke out the blond. "Any last words?" Inferno gritted out, loosening his grip briefly on Kendall's neck so that the blond could speak.

"Behind you" Kendall managed to say before being dropped to the floor.

* * *

When James woke up, he glanced around his apartment briefly, trying to remember what had happened, but as soon as his eyes landed on Inferno straddling Kendall, he remembered exactly what had happened.

Panicked, James found himself crawling away from the fridge and behind the back of the island in the kitchen so that he was out of the way briefly. He knew that he needed to come up with something to help Kendall, but his heart was racing, and he was panicking massively about what to do. He'd never been in a situation like this before.

Sure, helping Kendall after he was attacked from Switchblade was one thing, but actively fighting a supervillain was another.

Peaking out from behind the island again, James could see that Kendall was trying to reach for a piece of wood with his feet, and that's when the idea hit James. He needed the metal baseball bat that he'd kept in his bedroom. That thing was powerful enough to knock out the supervillain right?

With very little options, other than to wait to see who would win between Kendall and Inferno, James made a run for his bedroom, hoping that Inferno would haven't seen him. By the time James had made it down the hallway, he was greeted with the sound of someone screaming and a few seconds later came the loud crash, like something was falling apart.

Panicking further, James sprinted into his room, going straight into his wardrobe where the metal object lived and as he retreated back from his room, he watched as Kendall was thrown across the living room, crashing into his TV. James winced for the blond, and as he watched Inferno cross his apartment with wicked speed, James knew he had to act fast.

As carefully as he could, James made his way over to the two of them, trying his best to stay as quiet as he possibly could, and as he approached, he heard Inferno speak up.

"Any last words?" Inferno gritted out, Kendall glancing over the villain's shoulder for a brief second where he made eye contact with James, who had the bat ready.

"Behind you," Kendall said, and James took that as his cue, swinging the bat as hard as he could, causing it to connect with the side of Inferno's head with a huge amount of force. The force was enough to cause Inferno to drop the blond to the ground, but it didn't knock out the villain as intended.

"I did say I would love it if you put up a fight," Inferno said, as he turned towards James, who went to swing the bat a second time. This time, however, Inferno was able to grab it, yanking it from James' grip and throwing it to the ground as James began to back away. "But you've been alive for far too long but this point" Inferno continued, growing a fireball in his hand. James stumbled over a loose piece of rubble, the brunet falling to the ground causing a grin to grow on Inferno's face. "Good riddance James," Inferno said, but before he could launch the fireball, Kendall was on his back, choking the supervillain.

"Get out of here" Kendall screamed to James, causing the brunet to jump to his feet, but as he did, he noticed something in the kitchen, causing him to scramble towards it. That's when James heard another thud, with Inferno having thrown Kendall across the room once again, so James knew that he had to act fast.

Grabbing the object, James noticed that Inferno was now focusing on Kendall once again, the blond now leaning against the wall as Inferno approached him, so James basically sprinted across the room, grabbing his metal bat as he did so. Acting quickly, James threw the fire blanket over Inferno before swinging his bat at the villain's leg's this time, causing him to fall to the ground.

That's when James just began swinging the bat over and over again at the covered villain on the floor, all of his anger and rage coming out.

"James! JAMES!" Kendall had to shout to get the brunet to stop, and as soon as he did, James dropped the bat as his hands began to shake. "I need you to call 911, can you do that for me?" Kendall asked, causing James to nod, his hands still shaking from what he'd done.

As Kendall straddled Inferno once again, keeping the fire blanket firmly on the villain, who was struggling beneath the blond.

"Do you really think this will work? A fire blanket?" Inferno asked, but as soon as he tried to ignite his body once again, nothing happened, causing Kendall to pin the object down harder out of reflex.

"Fire needs oxygen to burn, and without oxygen, you're powers are useless" Kendall replied, Inferno trying to ignite himself once again, only to fail this time as well.

"The police are on their way," James said, the brunet dropping to the ground as he let out a deep breath of relief. "Hey, good job" Kendall said to him, but from the look on James' face, Kendall knew that he didn't believe him.

With his legs up to his chest, James looked as fragile as ever, and that didn't stop even when the police got there.

* * *

 **So there we have it, the fight with Inferno in which James helped Kendall stop him, with a fire blanket no less. I thought that was cheesy and mundane enough to do the job 😜 But yeah, one supervillain is down and James' apartment is completely destroyed because of it!** **And poor Ricardo getting knocked out already, but don't worry, we will get the fall out from this in the next chapter!**

 **I want to say a massive thank you to Winterschild11, Guest, RainbowDiamonds and EpicallyObsessed for reviewing the last chapter and I'm so glad you liked it! You all seem to like Katie, which I'm glad about, as I have a plan with her and I've been debating whether to implement it or not, so I think I'm going to go for it! Also, you all seem to both appreciate and hate Mr Diamond for what he did, which I have to agree with. He did a good thing hiring security, but it was out of pettiness and self-absorption. You all seemed curious about Ricardo as well, but as we've seen in this chapter, he's already getting a tough break.**

 **Anyway, I hope you all have a great week, and I will see you all on Thursday for the next chapter of Rush and Response, which will pick up where the last one left off, with James heading to see the commissioner. But until then,**

 **TTFN 😃❄**


	26. Chapter 26

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! So, this chapter is the aftermath of the Inferno fight, so let's crack on with it, shall we?**

* * *

"So what exactly happened Blizzard?" Carlos asked as Kendall watched Inferno being cuffed and dragged away, fire blanket still firmly covering the villain to make sure he didn't try to escape.

"Well, I was patrolling the area, keeping an eye out for James when I saw someone falling from his balcony. Blond hair, green eyes"

"That would be Kendall Knight, James' partner," Carlos said, causing Kendall to nod, knowing he had to play dumb as Blizzard.

"So, yeah, I saw him falling so I swept into action, and caught him about halfway down. He was super grateful about it, but he was also worried about James up here. He said that Inferno had used him as a pawn against James, before throwing him off the balcony and that the two of them were still up there. So, I dropped Kendall down on the floor and told him to wait in the alley I dropped him into until I went and got him. That's when I came up to the apartment"

"And that's when you fought Inferno," Carlos said, causing Kendall to nod, as he glanced over at James who was currently being checked by some EMT's.

"Yeah. James was being chocked out on the fridge when I arrived, and when I confronted Inferno, he bashed James' head against it, causing him to pass out before he dropped to the floor. That's obviously when the two of us started fighting, and all this happened" Kendall said, causing Carlos to glance around at the apartment.

"Well, at least Inferno's in custody now and we're taking him to the SCIP. I'll have to get the guys to design some sort of fire retardant cell to put him in, and we'll have to find a way to dull his powers but I'm sure he'll manage" Carlos replied, causing Kendall to let out a small sigh as he glanced around once again. "What's up? You don't seem too enthusiastic about this guy going behind bars" Carlos added, causing Kendall to shake his head as he glanced back at the chief.

"It's not that, I'm certainly grateful that Inferno's in custody and that he's no longer a threat to the Diamond Family, but it's what he told me" Kendall replied, causing Carlos to raise an eyebrow at him as he pulled out his notepad ready to make notes. "Inferno said that the Diamond Family killed his entire village by poisoning the water supply that they drank from, so while I don't condone his actions in any way, I can see why he acted the way that he did. I mean, if someone took everything you loved from you, and you had the chance to make them pay for it…let's just say that I can see why he did it" Kendall continued, now thinking back to what he did to the orphanage he grew up in.

While he hadn't gone to the lengths that Inferno had to get revenge, it was safe to say that Kendall had gotten some payback of his own. The superhero shook his head at the thought, Carlos speaking up as he did so.

"I'll have someone look into it. If the Diamond Family have been poisoning rivers and killing off villages then it's safe to say that they should be held accountable for it"

"Thanks, Chief, it means a lot" Kendall replied, causing Carlos to flash him a small smile.

"Well, I'm going to have a quick chat to James about everything that happened, as having his perspective will be helpful and I'll need to chat to Kendall as well" the Latino said, causing Kendall to nod, trying to stop the smug look from growing on his face that Carlos was already talking to him.

"Just be careful with James Chief. I think he's a little freaked out by the whole situation" Kendall said, causing Carlos to nod.

"I will be, and once again, thank you, Blizzard, for all you did here today"

"I'm just doing my bit Chief" Kendall replied, flashing Carlos to small smile before the two of them split off.

Watching as the police chief headed over to James, Kendall made his way back onto the balcony, where a pile of his clothes sat. Thankful that the police hadn't found them yet, Kendall scooped them up into his arms before jumping off of the balcony, creating a slide for him to slide down towards the ground. Really, Kendall should have been a bit more careful as to where he'd thrown his clothes as James' apartment probably wasn't the best place for them, but at the time, that certainly wasn't Kendall's concern.

That was James' safety.

As the blond landed in the alley behind the Morningstar Rise apartments, he quickly slipped his clothes over his suit, hiding any evidence that he was Blizzard before making his way back up to James' apartment, ready to do his bit as 'helpless civilian saved by the hero.'

This would certainly be interesting for the blond as he'd never had to give a testimony about a crime before, especially one that he'd stopped. Coming up with a plausible story in his head, Kendall made his way to the lift and pressed the button for the 55th floor, ready to show his other persona off, which was a genuinely scared and concerned boyfriend, something that Kendall didn't even need to pretend to be.

* * *

As the lift arrived on the 55th floor, and the door opened, Kendall was greeted with the sight of Ricardo giving a statement to the police. Both he and the officer glanced at the lift door opened for a brief second, and when Ricardo saw it was Kendall, his whole demeanour changed to one of sorrow. Kendall stepped off of the lift, curious about the change that had happened, and as Ricardo finished talking to the police officer, he approached the blond, a small frown on his face.

"So, I just wanted to say sorry for, you know, letting you get dropped off of the balcony. I didn't hear anything until James shouted" Ricardo said, rubbing the back of his neck, causing Kendall to shake his head.

"It's alright, there was nothing you could have done anyway. Inferno was pretty unstoppable" Kendall replied, causing Ricardo to relax slightly, the tension leaving his shoulders.

"I know what you mean, I ran into the room after hearing James shout, and he knocked me out cold. Still, I'm just grateful that Blizzard was there to help. He's a real hero"

"Yeah, he is" Kendall replied, a small smile growing on his face. "Anyway, I better get in there and see James. Let him know that I'm ok" Kendall continued, causing Ricardo to nod, stepping aside to let Kendall pass.

As the blond walked into the apartment, he made a beeline straight over to James, who was just finishing up with an EMT. When Kendall approached, the EMT flashing him a small smile before packing her stuff away, leaving the two of them alone, Kendall noticing that James was still shaking. Taking a seat next to the brunet on the chairs which used to sit around the dining room table, Kendall reached out and took one of James' hands into his own.

"How are you holding up?" Kendall asked, squeezing James' hand as he spoke.

"I'm ok. The EMT said that I might have a mild concussion, which would explain why I lost it with Inferno" James replied, causing Kendall to squeeze his hand once again.

"James you did nothing wrong"

"Kendall, I…" was as far as James got with a response before the brunet looked up to see Carlos approaching them.

"Mr Knight, would I be able to have a word with you? I just need you to make a brief statement about what happened" the police chief said, causing Kendall to nod his head, as he gave James' hand one last squeeze before letting it go.

"We're not done here," Kendall said, before he got up, and stepped away with Carlos, glancing at James, who had his head in his hands.

"As I said, I just need a brief statement about what happened. So, in your own words, could you tell me?" Carlos asked, pulling his notepad out, ready to make notes.

"Well, I was sat on the sofa while James offered to make me some dinner, and I was listening to James talk about his dad and what he'd done today when I felt someone wrap an arm around my neck and put there hand across my mouth. I was terrified, so I didn't try to call for help or do anything because I didn't know what I could do, and when James asked a question, I couldn't respond, so he turned around, and his face dropped when he saw who it was. I still didn't know at the time, but when he spoke up, I knew exactly who it was." Kendall began, wiping his hand over his forehead to wipe away the small bit of sweat that had formed there.

"Inferno started to taunt James, saying that he was here to kill the one he loved most, which he said was me, and the whole time, the two of us were backing towards the open patio door. James asked him not to hurt me, and Inferno said something like 'I'm not going to hurt him, his death will be quick and painless' before saying that after he'd killed me, he was going to kill James, and that's when he threw me through the glass railing, off of the balcony" Kendall replied, letting out a sigh as he glanced back at James, who still had his head in his hands.

"So, what happened next?"

"It was about halfway down the building, and I remember thinking that I was going to die when I felt someone catch me in their arms. It was Blizzard, and I was so grateful to see him. He carried me down to the floor, into a back alley, and he told me to wait there until he came and got me, so I knew it was safe, and that's what I did. When he finally came and got me, he told me that the police needed to interview me, so I came straight up and he skated off" Kendall finished, causing Carlos to nod as he finished up writing his notes.

"Perfect, thank you, and I'm sorry this happened to you. You were an innocent in something much bigger and I'm sorry you nearly got killed because of it" Carlos replied, causing Kendall to shrug, as he glanced over at James.

"I knew the risks of dating him, and I'd heard all the threats that Inferno was making, so it's mostly my fault" Kendall replied, a small smile growing on his face as he glanced at the brunet. He certainly knew the dangers of dating him, but not once did that ever put him off doing it.

"Also, I have to ask, would James be able to stay with you for a couple of nights. I think that it will do him some good to leave this apartment and go somewhere different, especially with the memories that he now has associated with here. If not, we'll provide a hotel for him to stay in,"

"Yeah, he can stay with me" Kendall replied, causing Carlos to nod.

"Perfect thank you once again. Would you be able to provide us with your address, just so we can keep an eye on the two of you? Inferno's threat has passed, but we understand that you might be on edge for a couple of days, so we just want to you know that we are there for you if you need us" Carlos continued, as he passed the notepad to the blond. As Kendall wrote down his address, Carlos spoke up again. "I also want you to have this, it's my phone number. If you or James feel like you need to talk to someone, give me a ring, and I can refer you to someone you can talk you, either a counsellor or a psychologist."

"Thank you Chief Garcia" Kendall replied, passing the notebook back as he took the business card from his hand.

"No worries, now we'll get out of your hair, and the two of you spend some time together" Carlos replied, causing Kendall to nod before the police chief began to walk away, Kendall now making his way back to the brunet. Neither of them spoke as they watched the police leave James' ruined apartment, and when the door was shut, three of them remained with Ricardo hoovering by the door.

"I'll be outside. I need to give a report to my boss" Ricardo said, causing them both to nod as he left the room once again, now leaving the two of them alone.

Squeezing James' hand once again, Kendall spoke up. "So, what were you going to say? You…"

"It doesn't matter" James replied, causing Kendall to shake his head, putting his finger under James' chin so that the brunet was looking at him.

"You're the one that said we should talk about our feelings remember" Kendall replied, causing a small smile to grow on James' face for a brief second.

"I just can't stop thinking about what I did. I mean, I beat the guy Kendall. He was on the floor defenceless and I just kept swinging. I was just so angry, with everything that he put me and my dad through, and at that moment, I just couldn't stop myself, it felt…good" James said, his emotions getting the better of him by the end as tears streamed from his eyes. "I'm a bad person, aren't I? Doing that shouldn't feel good, and I don't feel good about it now"

"Hey, hey, it's ok," Kendall said, pulling James in for a hug as the brunet cried into his shoulder. "You're not a bad person James. If you were, you wouldn't be feeling bad about it now, and I need you to remember that you saved my life. If you hadn't done what you did James, then…" Kendall began, before shuddering at the thought, not wanting to say it out loud. "You saved my life James, so I wouldn't feel guilty about it at all. Inferno wasn't hurt, and because of your quick thinking, he's now in custody and will no longer hurt anyone else, so try to focus on that" Kendall continued, causing James to nod into his shoulder. "Now come on, it might do you some good to get out of here and clear your head. Besides, your place is completely ruined" Kendall joked, causing James to let out a little chuckle as he sniffled, wiping the tears from his eyes.

"Yeah, it's completely wrecked. Do you think my insurance will cover superhero versus supervillain fights?" the brunet replied, trying to focus on what Kendall had said about him being a good person.

"If they don't, I'll help pay for some of the damages. I mean, after all, I did break-" Kendall glanced around briefly, thinking about what he was responsible for breaking. "All of it. I broke all of it" Kendall finished, causing James' eyes to widen dramatically.

"And I didn't even ask if you're ok? Oh god, I am a bad person" James replied, tears welling in his eyes once again, causing Kendall to shake his head. The blond knew it was the concussion causing James to have mood swings, so he just had to be patient with him.

"I'm fine James, honestly. I'm a little sore, but it's nothing I can't handle. You're my top priority at the moment, and I promise James, you're not a bad person" Kendall replied, causing James to nod once again, stray tears falling him his eyes. "Come on, let's go pack you a bag, and then we can head to mine, and get some rest. After the evening we've had, we definitely need it" Kendall said, causing James to nod.

As Kendall helped the brunet to his feet, the blond trying his best not to look at the damaged he'd caused to James apartment; the destroyed dining table, crumbled island, toppled sofa, smashed TV and shattered patio door and balcony railing as the two of them made their way to James' bedroom.

* * *

With James settled in his bed, safely asleep after today's events, Kendall found himself in his bathroom stripped out of both his clothes and his suit to reveal the damage that Inferno had done to him. Like Kendall said to the brunet, he was fine, but that didn't mean that he was completely ok, and the blond was feeling some pain when he moved a certain way or did a certain thing.

Finally pulling off his suit, the blond saw how his whole stomach was pretty much black with bruises, probably from landing on the slide front first, as well as from being thrown into James' kitchen island, and when Kendall turned around, he saw that a few sections of his back were damaged as well, from where he was launching into the TV. His throat was also slightly red from where Inferno arm was before Kendall throw off of the balcony and then from where Inferno was choking him out on the wall, but as Kendall had said to James, it was nothing that he hadn't handled before.

Sighing, Kendall headed back into his bedroom, where he slipped some pyjamas on, and just as he was about to climb into bed, his stomach rumbled once again, acting as a reminder of how this whole thing started. Letting out another sigh, Kendall made his way into his kitchenette, where he rummaged through his fridge trying to find something to eat.

After eventually finding some frozen bits in his freezer, Kendall shoved them into the oven, before turning on the TV, keeping the volume low so that he didn't wake James. However, the volume of the TV didn't affect what Kendall saw, which was a one-second clip of the blond falling towards the ground before hitting a slide of ice. Kendall's heart dropped in his chest as his ears suddenly couldn't focus on any sound that was being made, the blond dropping onto his sofa as he tried his best not to panic.

Still, the one thing that kept going through his mind was that his secret was blown, and that alone was enough to cause his panic to grow tenfold.

* * *

 **So there we have it! Everyone is mostly ok after the fight with Inferno, some minor injuries were sustained by nothing major, but of course, the big cliffhanger this chapter is whether his secret is out! The next chapter will pick right up where this one left off, so get ready for that!**

 **So, I want to say a massive thank you to Winterschild11, Guest, RainbowDiamonds and EpicallyObsessed for reviewing the last chapter, and I'm so glad you enjoyed it! You're right, they definitely do make a great team, but James certainly is going to struggle with what he did. This chapter showed it a little bit, but it will come up again! Also, I'm so glad that you loved the fire blanket! As soon as I thought it, (I saw the one in my kitchen), I knew that I just had to include it! Like you've all said, it's cheesy but it certainly worked! Plus, some of you felt bad for Inferno as well, so I decided to explore that a little more in this chapter!**

 **I hope that you all have a great week, and I will see you on Thursday for the next chapter of Rush and Response! But until then,**

 **TTFN 😃❄**


	27. Chapter 27

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! So, this picks up right where the last chapter left off, so let's crack on with it, shall we?**

* * *

As the clip disappeared from the TV, instead being replaced with the sight of news anchors, Kendall's ears began to focus in again, listening to what the two people had to say.

 _"That was footage of someone falling from the Morningstar Rise Apartment block precisely 40 minutes ago, at 11:26 am. The footage shows an unknown person falling from the penthouse suite before landing on a slide made of ice, which suddenly appeared beneath them. Speculation has already begun as to whether this person may be Blizzard, however when questioned about the event, the police refused to answer any questions relating to it, or Inferno's attack moments after."_ One news anchor said, causing Kendall to let out a small sigh of relief.

Thank god for Carlos not answering any questions about what had happened, but that still didn't mean he was safe. Journalists manage to get case files all the time, all it takes is a well-placed bribe, so it's still entirely possible that Kendall's secret could get out. Plus, Carlos, Ricardo and all of the other officers and EMT's at the scene also knew that Kendall was the one that was dropped from the building, so they could have pieced it together by now. All it took was for someone to enhance the footage and he'd be fucked. The blond's heart rate elevated once again, and the panic set in further, but luckily the other news anchor began to talk so Kendall tried his best to focus on that.

 _"We'll show the full clip now, as what you just witnessed was a small piece of the recording. Viewers are to be advised as this footage does contain strong language"_ The news anchor finished, the TV screen now cutting to a clip of a camera pointing to the floor, half of the screen blacked out.

From what was being said, Kendall gathered that it was a couple of guys recording after one of them had dropped their phone and smashed the camera on it. That's when one of the guys pointed out something dropping far in the distance, so the guy holding the phone lifted it, and pointed it out of the window, able to record the one-second clip that Kendall was fearing. When the clip ended, the news anchor spoke up again.

 _"As shown here, due to the nature of the footage, we're being told that enhancement would not be helpful. This is because of the long distance that it was being filmed over, as well as the quality of the footage. Still, the question remains, did we just get our first piece of evidence as to who Blizzard is, or is this just pre-requisite footage showing Blizzard saving someone before he comes into the frame? Whatever the case, it's safe to say that the internet is blowing up with suggestions and comments. Lizzy from 23_ _rd_ _Street-"_

Kendall switched off the TV at this point, letting out another sigh of relief at what had been said. Without footage enhancement, it's going to be difficult for them to get a clear picture as to what happened, and just like the news said, the footage could just corroborate what he'd said to the police, that Blizzard had saved him. Still, doubt sat at the back of Kendall's mind, the blond reminding himself that he'd told the police that Blizzard caught him in his arms and not by an ice slide. Then again, Kendall could put that down to the fact that you know, he was hurtling towards the ground, fearing for his life.

Whatever the case may be, Kendall knew one thing, that he'd have to be more careful when it came to situations like that. This was certainly a close call, and thankfully nothing more could be done to prove it was/wasn't him. But a well-placed camera that isn't broken could very easily reveal his identity to the world, so he knew he'd have to be more careful with keeping his secret safe. Another sigh escaped Kendall's mouth, but this one quickly became yawn, the blond suddenly becoming tired after the adrenaline of the TV scared faded away.

Heading back towards the oven, Kendall checked it to see that the food he was cooking was pretty much done. Quickly eating that, Kendall found himself heading to his bedroom, where James was still passed out, curled up into a little ball with most of the duvet covering him. With a small smile on his face, Kendall crawled in next to the brunet, pulling some of the covers back for himself, before settling in for the night.

Still, as Kendall closed his eyes, the worry and fear of exposure still remained, his brain constantly coming up with situations of how someone could have found out about him. His main fear was that Carlos would find out, with the Police chief being very good at his job, and with the evidence that was there, it wouldn't be difficult for him to piece it together.

Still, Kendall only hoped that he could keep up the illusion that Blizzard had saved him from falling, even if Kendall's 'recollection of the event' was slightly off. Rolling over in the bed, he was faced with the brunet, who was still sound asleep, and that caused another small smile to grow on Kendall's face. Whatever came out of today with him, he could count on one thing; James was safe, and he was no longer under threat was Inferno, nor was his father.

The blond could rest easy knowing that his boyfriend was finally safe, from targeted attacks at least and that the man responsible was now behind bars. As well as that, Kendall could also rest easy knowing that Inferno's motives for such an attack were being investigated and that if his accusations were true, that the villain could have some peace for himself.

Those thoughts were enough for Kendall to settle into a peaceful slumber, the blond draping his arm over James, pulling the brunet close as he did so.

* * *

When James woke up the next morning, he rolled over, causing something to ping into his back. It took him a few seconds to realise what it was, with the brunet remembering that he'd slept at Kendall's last night after the fight with Inferno at his apartment. As soon as that thought came into James' mind, he was immediately filled with guilt once again, the brunet remembering himself letting loose on Inferno with a baseball bat.

Trying his best to push it to the back of his mind, James' pushed himself up in the bed and grabbed some of his clothes that had been dumped on the floor. The clear lack of Kendall in the room and the sound of the TV in the other one suggested to James that the blond was already up, so James made his way into the living area where Kendall was stood in the small kitchenette, making himself a cup of coffee.

"Hey, you want one?" Kendall asked, glancing over at James, who nodded to him before taking a seat on the sofa, listening to what the news had to say. The news anchors were going on about footage captured last night, and that caused James' attention to pique.

"Have you seen this?" James asked, causing Kendall to nod as he walked over and place a cup of coffee in front of James, before sitting on the sofa himself.

"Yeah, I saw it when they were first talking about it last night" Kendall replied, taking a sip of his coffee as James listened to what the news had to say.

"Are you worried about it?" James asked, causing Kendall to shrug slightly.

"A little bit," Kendall replied, letting out a sigh as he did so.

"I mean, so far nothing has come of it, as no one can seem to enhance the footage properly, but it's still slightly worrying that it's out there. I mean, this is proof that I'm Blizzard" Kendall continued, before letting out a small smile. "But what I'm mostly worried about is you. How are you feeling today?" Kendall asked, causing James to glance down at the floor slightly.

"I'm alright. My heads still a little sore, but it's nothing that a few pain killers won't fix" James chuckled, but when Kendall raised an eyebrow at him, James let out a sigh. "I'm still feeling guilty if that's what you're asking. I mean, I beat the guy Kendall. He was laid on the floor pretty much defenceless, and I beat him"

"Hey, it's ok," Kendall said, seeing how James was starting to get emotional once again. "We went over this James; you did nothing wrong. I mean, you saved my life. If it wasn't for you, he would have chocked me out on the wall"

"I know, but that doesn't stop the fact that I beat him. I mean, you were saved by that point, but I just carried on, and it just felt so good. I know you're going to say I'm not, but I feel like a terrible person Kendall" James said, holding his head in his hands once again, so Kendall tried a different tactic.

"So, does that make me a terrible person as well?" Kendall asked, causing James' head to shoot up.

"What?"

"Does that make me a terrible person as well? I mean, I also beat on Inferno when he knocked you unconscious in the kitchen, so am I a terrible person because of that?"

"What, no, of course, you're not. You were acting out of defence, trying to look out for me"

"And that's exactly what you were doing James, don't you see that," Kendall said, reaching over to place a hand on James' knee to try and comfort the brunet slightly. "You were doing exactly what I was doing, James, so you shouldn't feel back about it. Because of you, a supervillain is in prison, and he can no longer hurt anyone" Kendall continued, causing James to shake his head slightly.

"It's not the same. You're a superhero, you save lives"

"And you saved my life, James. You're a superhero in your own right. Not many people would have the courage and bravery to do what you did James"

"I definitely wasn't brave, or courageous. I was shitting myself"

"But you still put my needs ahead of your own James, and that's what makes you a good person. Whatever you were feeling in that moment, you still saved my life and put yourself last." Kendall said, squeezing James' leg slightly as he shuffled in closer to place a chaste kiss onto James' lips. "You should be proud of what you did. You thought on your feet, getting that fire blanket and you stopped a supervillain. Not many people can say that they've done that. Just think of all the people you've saved"

"I don't know how you manage to do this. Maybe I'm just not cut out to be a hero"

"I wasn't either at first," Kendall replied, causing James to glance over at him with shock on his face.

"You've saved so many lives, Kendall, how could you think that"

"Because at first, all I could focus on was that I was putting someone behind bars for the rest of their lives. When I first started, I was going after drug dealers, or gang members that I knew were extorting and hurting people, but even knowing that, I felt guilty because, like you, all I could focus on was the bad things that I was doing. A lot of the times, the people would end up hurt because they'd try to fight me and I'd defend myself, and when they were taken away by the police, I knew that was it for the rest of there lives. I knew that they're lives were ruined because I'd caught them. But what you've got to remember James, and what I started to learn over time, is that I needed to focus on the people that I was helping, instead of those I was hurting. It was after one case in particular when I'd taken down a guy that was kidnapping kids and selling them on, a mother came up to me, clutching her baby girl in her arms. She was so grateful for what I'd done, for reuniting her family and I realised that I needed to start focusing on the good I was doing. Because I'd taken that guy down, I'd reunited 5 families with their children, and I'm stopped any more from going through the suffering that these families had gone through." Kendall paused letting out a sigh.

"It's never easy James, and to this day, I still feel guilty about I have to do, but when I see the results of my actions, the joy on people's face when they know that they're safe again, it makes it slightly easier. It reminds me of why I'm doing what I'm doing." Kendall finished, causing James to lean over and give Kendall a chaste kiss back.

"You do so much good Kendall. This city is so much safer because of you, and you should never doubt yourself like that" James replied, causing Kendall to flash him a small smile.

"Do you see my point now? It's so easy to get caught up in all the bad in the world that it's easy to forget that you're out to do good, and that's exactly what you did James. You're a good person, and you can't let one bad action cloud your judgement, trust me, I know how damaging that can be" Kendall said, the blond now staring at his hands, fidgeting slightly as he spoke. James could tell from that action that Kendall was talking from experience.

Taking a deep breath, James spoke up again. "Do you want to talk about it?" James asked, causing Kendall to glance up at him.

"About what?" Kendall asked, causing James to raise an eyebrow at him.

"The thing that you're still guilty about" James replied, causing Kendall to stare at him blankly. "Come on Kendall, I know you, and I know that you're talking about yourself" James continued, causing Kendall to let out a sigh.

"It's nothing really" Kendall replied, causing James to raise an eyebrow at him again, Kendall letting out a sigh as he did so. "Do you remember when I told you that I did something to the orphanage I grew up in?" Kendall asked, causing James to nod. "It's just, I still feel guilty about it to this day. I know what it's like to lose control when you're mad at someone"

"What did you do?" James asked, causing Kendall to let out a sigh, the blond downing the rest of his coffee that was sat on the table before shuffling back on the sofa so that he could get comfy. Eye's trained to the ground, Kendall began to tell the story.

"So, it was the last night before I left for Spirit City for university, and I'd booked a hotel room with the money I had. I just couldn't stay in that place for one second longer, and I was just so excited to get out of the city and start a whole new life, but at the same time, I couldn't forget about all the things that they'd done to me. As I laid there in that bed trying to get to sleep, all I could think of were the horrible things that they'd not only put me through but also all of the other kids in there. I mean, a ten-year-old kid had only just moved in that week, and they'd already punished him 5 times, mostly for stupid shit like him accidentally dropping something on the floor or 'not cleaning the bathrooms properly.' I knew I shouldn't do anything, that I should be happy that I was out of that place, but at the same time, I felt bad because I felt like I was abandoning those kids, letting them go through exactly what I went through"

"So what did you do?" James asked, taking a sip of his own coffee as he shuffled closer to the blond to give him some support.

"I suited up and I made my way out there. I told myself that I was just going to get the kids out of there and call the police on the place so that they'd be put in a safer orphanage, but when I got there, my anger just rose, and it kept rising. I started off by throwing snowballs at the windows were the nuns slept, and it felt good to have a small amount of power over them like that, but that's when Miss Blanchard came out calling me a 'little shit' and saying that I was worthless and 'didn't deserve the air that I breathed.' She didn't even know who it was, I had my old makeshift suit on, so this was her in general. I started to step back, knowing that I was going to act out soon and I did try to stop myself, but when he stepped towards, calling me more and more insulting words, I lost it. I froze her feet to the ground so that she couldn't move, and I started to rant at her, saying how it's not nice to be stuck out in the cold, with very little on and when she started to struggle, I started to laugh, saying how it wouldn't do her any good.

She started to scream for help, but I said that no one was going to her help, just like how no one helped all of the kids she'd tortured over the years. More of the sisters came out, and even a few of the kids started to gather, seeing how Miss Blanchard was screaming and shouting, and when a few of the sisters tried to help, I launched an ice shard there way. It didn't hurt them or anything, but it was enough to get them to back off. I started to go on about how all of them had done unspeakable things, about how they all needed to be taught a lesson of their own, about how they were horrible people that needed a taste of their own medicine, but when Miss Blanchard started to deny everything, I snapped. I could feel the anger rising, and before I completely lost it, I told the kids to go inside and get whatever was precious to them. It wasn't long before they all came back out, some of them clutching absolutely nothing, and when Miss Blanchard started to give me shit again about how I was a nobody, I froze the entire orphanage, encasing it in a massive ice block. No one was caught in it, but I made it so thick and so cold that it would take you years to get through it. The roof even collapsed in on itself while I was doing it, and then that was frozen into place as it fell. All those years' worth of anger and frustration, and I let it all out, bringing that place to its knees.

When I was finished, I remember everyone being silent, just staring at the frozen building, but I marched right up to Miss Blanchard, and threatened her saying if she didn't confess to what she'd been doing to all those kids over the years, I'd do a similar thing to her, starting from the inside out. By the time the police had finally arrived, I was 'gone' but I was watching from the trees listening to what she said, and she did, she confessed everything, telling them about how she'd beat us, how she'd lock us outside and how she wouldn't feed us sometimes, and all of the nuns confessed as well. I watched them all get locked up, and I knew that I'd saved all of those kids, but when I returned to the hotel room, I broke down crying. I'd abused my power that night, I'd let anger get the better of me, and that night I wasn't any better than any of the people I was trying to stop. So, I made myself a vow, saying that I'd try harder and that I'd only use my powers for good" Kendall finished, causing James to pull him into a hug.

"Oh, Kendall" was all James said at first, thinking of the right thing to say.

"I know what you're going to say James" Kendall spoke up, causing James to glance down at him slightly. "You're going to say that the nuns deserved what they got and that I shouldn't feel guilty for it, after all the years of torture they'd put me through"

"Well, yeah, but I was also going to say that you showed a lot of restraint that night. It would have been so easy for you to kill them, but even despite your anger, you didn't resort to the worst thing you could have done. You saved all of the kids, and you didn't actually hurt anyone, you may have given Miss Blanchard frostbite, but you didn't hurt anyone out of rage. Even that story shows that you're a hero. You punished the bad, you saved the kids, and you stopped it from ever happening again"

"I wouldn't call myself a hero for freezing an orphanage" Kendall replied, letting out a soft, sad chuckle as he did so. "But I appreciate what you're trying to say" the blond continued, causing James to lean down and place a kiss onto Kendall's lips, the two of them descending into silence as they both thought over what was shared, watching the TV as they did so.

"We are quite a pair aren't we?" James asked, causing Kendall to let out a little chuckle.

"We definitely are" the blond replied, flashing James a small smile before placing a kiss onto his lips, the two of them embracing each other and the comfort that they brought.

* * *

 **So there we have it! Kendall's secret is safe from the public, but Kendall's still worried about a select few individuals finding out, and we also had more of Kendall's backstory, learning about what happened with the orphanage! So yeah, not much really happened this chapter, but Kames had a bit more bonding time!**

 **I want to say a massive thank you to Winterschild11, Guest, RainbowDiamonds and EpicallyObsessed for reviewing the last chapter and I'm so glad that you liked it! You all seemed pretty concerned about Kendall's identity being blown, but you can relax a little bit now as the public don't know. That's all I'm going to say on that matter, and of course, James is still feeling guilty about the whole thing, but hopefully, Kendall's helped him with that!**

 **I also just want to say that this is my second story over 100,000 words, which for some reason feels like a massive accomplishment to me! Well, technically, the story itself is 'only' 90950 words, and my rambling has taken up 10,000 words, but still 😜 So yeah, we still have so much of this story to go, so I hope you're excited! I didn't plan it this way, but its certainly going to be a long one!**

 **I hope you all have a great week, and I will see you all on Thursday for the next chapter of Rush and Response, which is also getting up there in terms of word count. Boy, can I ramble! But until then,**

 **TTFN 😃❄**


	28. Chapter 28

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! Again, I don't have a lot to say so let's crack on with it, shall we?**

* * *

By the time Monday has arrived, James had decided that he just wanted to get back to normal. Now that Inferno's threat was over, James hoped that everything would go back to the way it was, with him not having to worry about his dad secretly hiring private security to look out for him, or about the fact that he could be attacked at any moment. His drive for normality started with him essentially pushing Kendall out of his own apartment on Monday morning.

"Come on James, you know that I don't need to go into work today. I can call in sick" Kendall said, leaning against the doorframe as James blocked the way into his apartment.

"You don't need to call in sick, I'm fine Kendall" James replied, causing Kendall to raise an eyebrow at him.

"Are you sure? I heard you last night, I know you were having a nightmare about it" Kendall stated, causing James to let out a sigh.

It was true, he had had a nightmare about the whole situation, and that was part of the reason he was hoping to get back to normal. The weekend had given him plenty of opportunities to overthink everything that had gone on, and he was hoping that he could focus his mind onto something else before he spent the day repeating that same process.

"Honestly Kendall, I'm ok. I just want everything to get back to normal because to be perfectly honest, I could do with the distraction" James replied, causing Kendall to nod, the blond leaning in to steal a kiss from James' lips.

"Alright, but remember that I'm just a phone call away if you need to talk about anything"

"I think I've done enough talking over the weekend," James said, causing them both to let out a little chuckle. "Now go on, you're gonna be late"

"But if I'm dating the boss' son, can I really be late, or can I just get away with it?" Kendall grinned, leaning in for another kiss, one that James succumb to quickly.

Moments passed as the two of them kissed before James finally gained some willpower and pushed Kendall away, a small smile on his face. "Go you, otherwise you'll never make it to work"

"Is that really a bad thing?" Kendall said, his eyes darkening with lust, and it took all of James' might to push Kendall back once again.

"Go"

"Ok, I'm going, I'm going, but I'll see you later yeah?"

"Yeah, you'll see me later" James replied, causing a smile to grow on Kendall's face.

As the blond turned away, heading down the stairs, he knew deep down that he could spend all the time in the world with James, and it would never be enough.

* * *

When Kendall arrived at the makeshift lab at SCU, he was greeted with the sight of Logan jumping slightly as the sound of the door opening.

"Morning Doc" Kendall said, causing Logan to turn to him, his eyebrow raised.

"Morning Kendall, I didn't expect to see you here today. I thought you'd be spending the day with James after everything that happened on Friday" Logan replied, causing Kendall to let out a little chuckle as he hung his bag on a hook and grabbed a lab coat and a pair of safety glasses.

"Please, he basically kicked me out of my own apartment this morning, saying that he just wanted to get back to normal"

"To be fair, you can't blame him. Between watching Diamond Inc fall to the ground to then being attacked in his own home, I can imagine he just wants everything to return to the way it was" Logan said, causing Kendall to nod as he headed further into the lab. "Although I bet he's glad that he's got you to look out for him" Logan added, causing Kendall to let out a little sigh.

"I'm not really much good at that Doc, I have to admit. I mean, I wasn't much help when it came to the attack on Friday" Kendall said, causing Logan to raise an eyebrow at him.

"Really?" Logan asked, causing Kendall to nod as he headed towards his desk.

"Yeah. Once Blizzard had rescued me, he told me to stay out of the way until it was safe. If it wasn't for him, then I'd be dead and so would James"

"That is true. And I have to say that I'm surprised at how fast you've recovered from that. If I were thrown out off of a balcony, I probably wouldn't want to leave my house for a week, or go anywhere without police protection, so you're doing well to be here today" Logan continued, causing Kendall to turn towards him, raising his eyebrow at the doctor who was staring right at him.

"What can I say? I suppose I just want things to get back to normal as well. I'm safe, James is safe and Inferno's imprisoned so that's one less thing for us all to worry about" Kendall replied, causing Logan to shrug, his eyes still focused directly onto Kendall.

"Still, Switchblade is still out there and the city's not really safe until she's in custody as well. I'm just curious to see whether Blizzard has a plan to deal with her as well"

"I'm sure he does" Kendall replied, tilting his head slightly as he maintained eye contact with the doctor for a short time longer.

Neither of them said anything as they stared at each other, both with one eyebrow raised, waiting to see who would crack first. Something deep down in Kendall knew what Logan was getting out, and at this point, he was just waiting for confirmation, something that Kendall didn't plan on giving the doctor.

That's when Logan reached into his pocket and pulled out a small remote. Pressing a button on it, the TV at the back of the room turned on, showing the footage of Kendall falling from the Morningstar Rise, but this time the footage was fully enhanced, showing a blond-haired guy falling from the building before creating an ice slide beneath him.

As Kendall watched, he let out a sigh. "How'd you enhance it? I thought that wasn't possible" Kendall said, causing Logan to shrug as he moved beside him.

"I'm a scientist Kendall, with access to a supercomputer. I think I can restore some poorly filmed footage" the doctor replied, causing Kendall to glance at him.

"So you know,"

"I know" Logan replied, switching the footage off. "I have to admit, I wasn't 100% sure. The police still haven't released any information about the crime scene so asking about you falling from the balcony was a long shot, but since you just confirmed it" Logan shrugged, not even bothering to finish the sentence since Kendall knew exactly what he meant. "I mean, it does make sense, and I'm surprised that I didn't see it sooner. I mean, you always sneak off when a crime is happening. At first, I just thought that you were a massive fan, but this makes more sense. And the whole situation with Pulsewave's Gauntlet's, I mean, I feel like an idiot accusing you of being a supervillain now"

"You can't tell anyone" Kendall interrupted, turning to Logan, his tone ever so slightly pleading. "No one else can know"

"I won't tell anyone, and I'll delete this footage so that no one else gets there hands on it. It's just…this whole time, I've been talking to you about Blizzard, and you've been stood right there."

"You've been some of my biggest inspiration Doc, you've helped me get through the times when I've been struggling" Kendall replied, causing a small smile to grow on Logan's face.

"So, I have to ask, does anyone else know?" Logan asked, causing Kendall to let out a little chuckle.

"James does. He…um…he helped me when I was injured by Switchblade, but that's it. Seriously Doc, you can't tell anyone else. The more people who know, the more people are in danger if anything happens"

"I promise, I won't tell anyone," Logan said, and Kendall could hear the sincerity in this voice. "But I do have a few questions if you'd just indulge me" Logan continued, causing Kendall to roll his eyes as the doctor reached into his pocket and pulled out a list.

Still, Kendall knew he couldn't refuse. After all, Logan had confessed to him over the phone that he wanted to know. Readying himself, Kendall listening to the doctor's questions and tried his to best answer them without giving away too much of his history.

James was the only person that really needed to know the dark details about the whole ordeal.

* * *

As James arrived at his desk, he was greeted with the sight of a cake with a bow on top of it. "What's this?" James asked, causing Camille to turn to him with a grin on her face.

"It's an 'I'm sorry you can't catch a break' cake" Camille replied, causing James to shake his head as he dropped down into his seat, a small smile growing on his face as he did so.

"How long did it take you to think of that?" he asked, pushing the cake forward slightly so that he had room to place his laptop onto the table.

"About 5 minutes after I first heard about the attack on the news" Camille replied, causing James to let out a little chuckle. "Seriously though, are you ok?" she asked, causing James to nod as he opened his laptop up.

"I am. As usual, I've talked about the whole thing a lot with Kendall and I'm feeling better about the whole thing. I'm just ready for everything to go back to the way it was you know" James replied, causing Camille to nod.

"Yeah, I know what you mean. It's been a rough few weeks for you, so I don't blame you one bit. But you don't want everything to go back to normal normal do you?" Camille said, causing James to raise an eyebrow at her. "Because, you know, normal was you sitting alone at night eating takeout, but now that you've got Kendall" she continued, wiggling her eyebrows at him, causing James to roll her eyes.

"I meant normal as in 'not being threatened by a supervillain'" James replied, causing Camille to raise an eyebrow at him. "But you're right, I suppose a few things could stay the way that they are" James added, a massive grin now growing on Camille's face at the new. Before she could reply however, the office was filled with Griffin shouting James' name, causing the brunet to let out a sigh as he rolled his eyes. "I wouldn't mind that changing, however"

"Amen to that" Camille replied, causing James to lethargically push himself up from his chair and make his way over to Griffin's office. Before the brunet even had a chance to knock, Griffin called him in, the older man seemingly excited by something per the smile on his face. It was either that, or he'd gotten Botox and couldn't move his mouth, which James actually thought was more plausible than the whole smiling thing.

"This is perfect! We've got the perfect story!" Griffin began, pushing himself up from his desk as he stared right at James. "Think about it, we've finally got an inside perspective on how dangerous and destructive Blizzard is! I mean, he completely trashed your apartment James, and you were there when it happened! We've finally got the firepower we need to bring this bastard down, and I want you to be the one to do it for me!"

"Wait, what?" James asked, the brunet genuinely shocked by what was coming out of Griffin's mouth.

"We've got the perfect story! You can write about your experiences with Blizzard and show the world what a pest he is, writing it from your own perspective. Plus, you can say that you had to do all of the work and that he didn't help with anything! It's amazing, it's brilliant, it's-"

"No" James interrupted, causing Griffin to stop midsentence to look at him.

"No?" Griffin asked, the smile quickly disappearing.

"No, I can't, I won't write that. I'm not going to write a slander piece about a hero that quite literally saved my life from a villain. I won't do it"

"You'll do what I tell you to do!" Griffin replied, his tone becoming menacing as he began to raise his voice. "You work for me, and what I tell you to write, you write! Now, I'm telling you to get your ass out there and write about how that pest Blizzard destroyed your apartment and almost got you killed!"

"I said I won't do it!" James replied, raising his voice back. He'd put up with Griffin's attacks on Blizzard for too long, and being asked to write this article was the last straw. "In fact, you know what, I quit. I'm not doing this anymore. I'm not writing any more fucking pieces about how you think Blizzard is a menace! I quit!"

"I quit as well!" James heard a familiar voice behind him say, and when he turned around, he met the sight of the entire office watching and listening to everything that was being said.

"Camille, what are you doing?" James whispered, raising his eyebrow at the brunette who was making her way into Griffin's office.

"I'm making a stand as well. I'm sick of working for you, and I'm sick of writing stupid follow up reports of Blizzard's attacks. He's only doing good for this city, and every interview I've done is proving that, so I quit as well!"

"I'll see to it that the two of you never get hired by another newspaper or magazine company ever again!" Griffin seethed, causing a smug smile to grow on James' face.

"And I'll see to it that my father withdraws his investment from Dispatch Weekly. After all, that must be the only thing that is keeping this company running, since no one is clearly reading the shit that you order to be published" James replied, slightly loving that fact that he could finally flaunt his wealth in Griffin's face.

Without giving the older man a chance to respond, James turned around and walked off of the office, heading back to his desk where he began to pack his stuff up. When that was done, James didn't even give Griffin the time of day, the older man now raging in his office for James and Camille to 'return there immediately.'

As the two of them stepped into the lift, James couldn't resist the urge to stick his middle finger up at the boss just before the lift door closed and as soon as it did, James let out a sigh, leaning against the wall of the lift.

"Well, that was a rush! I've never quit a job like that before! Normally, I'm all boring with my letter of resignation, but not this time!" Camille said, high fiving herself, causing James to shake his head.

"You didn't have to do that. I didn't mean for you to lose your job as well"

"Are you kidding? The guy was a jackass and the only thing keeping me there was working with you" She replied, causing James to turn to her and pull her into a hug.

"Thank you, Camille"

"That's what friends are for" she replied, causing James to pull her in a little tighter before letting go.

"So what are we going to do now, since you know, no other newspaper will hire us"

"We could always make our own" Camille replied, causing James to raise an eyebrow at her. "Just think of it. My name everywhere, since we're clearly going to name this thing after me. We could call it Camille's Contemplation" she continued, causing James to let out a chuckle as the lift door opened.

"That's definitely one idea" he replied, causing Camille to glance up at him, a small on her face.

"So, should we do this thing? Should we really go for it?" she asked, causing James to shrug just as the lift door opened.

"Fuck it, let's go for it!" James replied, placing one hand out for a handshake. When Camille grabbed it with zealous, James spoke up. "Well met partner"

"Well met" Camille replied, the two of them giving one firm handshake before pulling each other into a hug, both of them finally feeling liberated.

* * *

As 5 pm dawned, Kendall began to pack up his stuff, ready to finish the first half of his working day. With Logan knowing his secret, it was safe to say that the day was spent with Kendall trying to get on with his work while Logan kept coming up with questions for him to answer. Kendall hadn't expected the day to go like that, so he was surprised at how exhausting answering questions all day was.

"I'll see you later Doc" Kendall called out as he began to head out of the University lab, causing Logan to pop his head around the corner.

"See you tomorrow, and try to stay safe!" Logan replied, causing a small smile to grow on Kendall's face at his words.

"Will do, Bye Doc" Kendall responded before finally leaving the lab, heading towards the lift as he did so.

The whole lift journey, Kendall contemplated what another person knowing would now mean, and Kendall hoped that nothing would come of it. Logan had worked on classified projects all of his life, so surely he knew how to keep a secret right? Letting out a sigh as the lift doors opened, Kendall made his way out of the building, but as soon as he stepped foot out of the door, he was greeted with another familiar face.

"Chief Garcia, I didn't expect to see you here," Kendall said, causing a small smile to grow on Carlos' face.

"Please, call me Carlos, I'm off duty" Carlos replied, causing Kendall to nod, the two of them beginning to walk together as Kendall's heart rate increased rapidly.

"So, what can I do for you?" Kendall asked, causing Carlos to glance around, noticing that it was all clear.

"I've come to ask you some more questions about what you said in Mr Diamond's apartment," Carlos replied, causing Kendall's heart rate to increase once again. "Both you and Blizzard told the same version of things, that you were falling and that he caught you in his arms, but the video that's circling clearly shows that you landed on an ice slide before Blizzard even reached you"

"What are you trying to say Chief?" Kendall asked, completely ignoring Carlos' earlier instruction, the blond now stopping in his tracks and turning to the inquisitive officer.

"What I'm trying to say is that I'm grateful for all that Blizzard has done for us and that I felt like _he_ needed to hear that. This city is a lot safer with _him_ in it, and my job would be a lot more difficult and tragic without _his_ help. I also wanted _him_ to know that _his_ secret is safe and that actions are being taken to remove any evidence that may indicate who _he_ is" Carlos replied, causing a small smile to grow on Kendall's face, the blond knowing that Carlos had clearly caught on.

Glancing around once again, noticing how a few people were starting to fill the path around them, Kendall spoke up. "Well, I'm sure that if Blizzard were to hear that, _he'd_ be very grateful for what you said and _he'd_ reply saying that it's been a pleasure working with you as well and that you're very clearly talented at your job" Kendall replied, causing Carlos to let out a little chuckle. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have another job to get to, and if I'm not careful, I'm going to be late" Kendall continued, but just as he was about to walk away, Carlos grabbed his arm.

"I do however feel like it's my duty to inform _him_ that not everyone in the police force feels the same way as I do and that it might be prudent for _him_ to start watching his back. There are only so many times that I can defend _his_ actions and have people listen to me, and after the destruction of Diamond Inc, I fear I'm running out. I just thought I'd warn _him_ of that" Carlos said, before letting go of his arm. Taking the warning to heart, Kendall nodded.

"Thanks, Carlos, I'm sure _he'd_ appreciate the warning" Kendall replied, causing Carlos to flash him a small smile before turning and heading back the way they came.

As Kendall made his way off of the campus to the coffee shop, he couldn't help but reflect on what Carlos said. At least the police chief would keep his secret safe, that was a huge relief, but as for the warning, Kendall let out a sigh. The only thing the blond could do at the moment was to take it one step at a time and hope that nothing disastrous would happen.

With Switchblade still out there, however, that was highly unlikely.

* * *

 **So there we have it, two people have discovered Kendall's secret, with both Logan and Carlos both promising to keep it safe. The question is, however, if that will actually happen! James also finally stood up to Griffin, and quit his job with Camille joining him, and the two of them have decided to start their own magazine company!**

 **I want to say a massive thank you to Winterschild11, Guest and EpicallyObsessed for reviewing the last chapter, and I'm so glad that you enjoyed it! A couple of people have put it together, but hopefully, they'll keep his secret safe and hopefully you're glad about who it is! You also seemed to like Kendall's backstory, which I'm glad about but his past has definitely been difficult on him, that's for sure!**

 **I hope you all have a great week, and I will see you all on Thursday for the next chapter of Rush and Response. But until then,**

 **TTFN 😃❄**


	29. Chapter 29

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! I'm going to apologise now if this chapter feels a little bit rushed. I've got friends down at the moment, so I basically spent my free time yesterday trying to get this done. With that being said, there might not be a chapter of Rush and Response on Thursday, as I'm moving out on Saturday so I'm spending this week cleaning/packing. Plus, that chapter is a big one and I want to make sure that I do it justice! Anyway, that's enough rambling from me, so let's crack on shall we?**

* * *

As James stared around his apartment, taking a look at all the damage that had been done, he couldn't help but take it as a moment of reflection, the brunet's mind consider how much James' life had changed since Kendall has entered his life, and that wasn't just since Kendall's Blizzard reveal. Even before that, James noticed that his life was changing, just because of Kendall's presence and it was safe to say that James was happy that it was.

Much like Camille had said to him earlier that day, his life without Kendall was him staying up late working in his apartment while he ordered in take away, and he never really spent time doing much else. The brunet would move from his sofa to his bed, where he'd get a few hours of sleep before he'd go to work the next day. And sure, he'd chat to Camille at work, but other than that, he didn't really get a lot of social interaction with others, something that his apartment seemed to convey.

Thinking back on it now, James recalled the first time he entered Kendall's apartment, and he instantly felt at ease there. Kendall's place was filled with small knick-knacks, that didn't seem to serve any purpose but to be decorative, and pictures hung on the walls, showing some of the fun times that Kendall had experienced, but James' apartment had none of those. It was void of clutter, void of any real objects and was very aesthetical, but it lacked that feeling of home that Kendall's apartment seemed to portray so well.

James let out a sigh as he glanced around once again before making his way down to his bedroom. The whole time he did, James couldn't help but pick up on the lack of homeliness that radiated from the place and the only reason he was now was because of the amount of time he'd spent at Kendall's place. When the brunet reached his bedroom, he sat himself down onto the edge of the bed, letting out a sigh of relief as he sank into it. That was certainly one thing that James had missed while staying at the blond's, with Kendall's mattress having a few springs loose due to its age.

Still, as James glanced around his bedroom, he picked up on the lack of personality that the room had. There was only one framed photo, which was one of him, his father and his mother one summer where they were all smiling and looking gleeful, but other than that, the room had nothing. It was built for a purpose, and all it did was serve that purpose, whereas Kendall's bedroom felt different, felt like than a room. Another sigh escaped James' mouth, this time as he dropped back onto the bed so that he was now laying down onto it.

If one thing had come out of all of this, it was that his place needed some serious redecoration, to try and make it feel more like a home and less like a place where he just lived, because that was what this apartment was becoming to James, a home containing some of his best and fondest memories. It was the place where Kendall has shared some of his deepest and darkest moments with James, about his life at the orphanage, and it had been the place where Kendall revealed his most sacred secret to him, with James finding out that Kendall was Blizzard on the sofa that was currently overturned in his living area.

With a small smile forming itself on his face, as James thought about all the times he'd shared with Kendall, his thoughts circled back to the one that started this whole process, with James realising that the blond had made such a profound impact on his life.

* * *

As Kendall walked to the coffee shop later that night, he also couldn't help but reflect on the day that he'd had, with both Logan and Carlos learning his secret. The blond certainly hadn't expected that today, and even though he managed to stay calm while both of them admitted it to him, it was safe to say that he was freaking out the whole situation now. Kendall knew that both the doctor and the police chief wouldn't say anything, but his mind couldn't help but wonder what happened if they did.

Immediately, he was filled with the anxiety of the whole city knowing his secret, of everyone knowing who he was and what he was doing and Kendall knew, from how his heart rate increased, that he wouldn't be able to handle that kind of pressure. As he arrived at the coffee shop, the blond was quick to rush inside, taking deep breaths to try and calm himself down. As soon as he saw James, he went straight over to the booth, sliding in opposite the brunet as he completely ignored the laptop set up there. Kendall was calmer by this point, but just from looking at the blond, James could tell that something was wrong, reaching over to take Kendall's hand into his own as he closed his laptop lid slightly.

"What's up? You seem nervous" James said, causing Kendall to let out a sigh as he squeezed James' hand.

"Carlos and Logan know. They figured it out" Kendall replied, causing James' eyes to widen.

"They know?" James asked, his voice becoming slightly frantic. "How?"

"They both figured it out" Kendall replied, and just as he was about to continue, someone spoke up.

"Figured out what?" The voice said, causing Kendall's heart to drop in his chest as he glanced over at the person stood at the end of the table. The blond froze, not sure what to say, but thankfully, James was able to think of his feet and cover for them.

"Figured out that we're dating. With Kendall working for my dad essentially, we wanted to keep it on the down-low, so that Logan didn't think that he could try and use Kendall to curry favour with him. As for Carlos, we just didn't tell him about it, but he's just figured it out" James replied, causing Kendall to nod opposite him as he squeezed James' hand once again. "Sorry, I should have said something. Kendall, this is Camille, Camille, this is Kendall" James added, causing a huge smile to grow on Camille's face.

"So you're the person that's making James less of a loner," Camille said, thankfully buying James' cover story, causing a small smile to grow on Kendall's face as he chuckled at Camille's joke.

"And you're James' only friend at work" Kendall replied, causing Camille to let out a little chuckle as Kendall slid out of the booth, finally clocking on that Camille was sat there. "Sorry about that, I was just freaking out a little"

"Don't worry about it. It's safe to say that I'm doing my fair share of freaking out as well" Camille replied, causing Kendall to raise an eyebrow at her as she slid into his seat.

"Oh yeah, what's that about?" Kendall asked, causing Camille to glance over at James briefly.

"We quit today," Camille said, Kendall raising an eyebrow at the two of them as he now slid into the booth next to James.

"This is the first I'm hearing about this. What happened?" Kendall asked, looking at James who began to shake his head.

"Griffin was just being a dick like usual, and today he just took it too far. He asked me to write a piece on Inferno's attack on my apartment, but like usual, he wanted me to slander Blizzard, saying that he did nothing and that it was his fault that my apartment is trashed" James explained, Kendall's facial expression switching between shock and frustration throughout the story. "Of course, I couldn't do it. I mean Blizzard saved my life and stopped the villain that was out to get me, so I wasn't going to tell lies about him, so I just quit. That's when Camille quit as well"

"Why'd you quit?" Kendall asked, turning to Camille.

"Cause Griffin's a twat," Camille said shrugging, causing Kendall to let out a chuckle. "The only real reason I was still there was that I enjoyed working with James, but I hated the job, and I hated the stuff he was making me right. When I heard James quit, there was no reason for me to stay, so I quit as well"

"I can't imagine he took it well" Kendall replied, causing James to snort next to Kendall.

"About as well as a child when you take away its favourite toy. He threatened us saying that 'we'd never work for another newspaper company again' so I threatened him back saying I'd get my father to withdraw all his investments in the company" James explained, causing Kendall to raise an eyebrow at him. "What, it was in the heat of the moment, and I just really wanted to stick it to him" James added, causing Kendall to let out a chuckle as he shook his head.

"So what are you two going to do now?" Kendall asked, causing James and Camille to glance over at each other.

"We've decided to start our own online blog about the good Blizzard is doing for the city," Camille said, causing a faint blush to grow on Kendall's face.

"We thought we'd really stick it to Griffin, and this was the best way to do that. Plus, I feel like I owe Blizzard something, and I felt like this was a good way to start 'paying him back' in a sense" James added, causing Kendall to raise an eyebrow at him for a brief second before he smiled at the both of them.

"Well, I hope it all works out for you. You can count on the fact that you'll at least have one reader" Kendall replied, causing everyone to let out a little chuckle.

"What about you, what do you do at Diamond Inc," Camille asked, causing Kendall to let out a little sigh as he shuffled in the booth.

"I work on a project including Glaciers, but unfortunately that's all I can say because I signed an NDA" Kendall replied, rolling his eyes as he did so. "I can say that we're struggling a little bit at the moment though because our focus has shifted to interpreting results, but it's been difficult to do as we're having to share the university's supercomputer. Dr Mitchell has booked out as many sessions as he possibly could but apparently 'it's against university regulation to book the computer for 5 days straight'" Kendall continued, letting out a sigh. "Sorry, this is probably really boring" he added, letting out a self-deprecating chuckle as he did so.

"No, not at all. If anything, it's just making me wonder how James landed someone like you" Camille replied, causing Kendall to let out a belly laugh while James frowned next to them.

"I suppose he was just at the right place at the right time" Kendall replied, before leaning over and placing a kiss onto James' cheek, causing James' frown to drop. "My boss is staring at me, so I should probably get to work. But, if you need anything, let me know" Kendall finished, causing James to quickly lean over and place a kiss onto Kendall's cheek.

"See you later" James smiled, causing a small blush to grow on Kendall's face before the blond disappeared, leaving James and Camille once again.

"I really like him" Camille spoke up, causing a grin to grow on James' face.

"I'm so glad I got your approval" the brunet replied, causing Camille to roll her eyes playfully before she spoke up again.

"Seriously, I think he's a really good influence on you, and I haven't seen you this happy in a long time" Camille reiterated, causing a small blush to settle itself on James' cheeks as he stared at Kendall who was currently serving a table.

Camille was right, despite everything, Kendall always made him feel joyful inside.

* * *

"So, both Logan and Carlos know?" James asked as they stepped foot into Kendall's apartment, James closing the door behind him.

"Yeah, both of them. Logan was the first one to confront me about it when I arrived at the lab this morning and then Carlos caught me after work" Kendall replied, letting out a deep breath as he dropped himself down onto the sofa, and switching the TV on as James sat down next to him.

"What did they say? How did they figure it out?" James asked, placing his arm across Kendall's shoulder before pulling the blond in tight, Kendall instantly relaxing into James.

"Both of them found out because of that recording that's going around. Logan managed to enhance it, so he had a suspicion, but I walked right into it this morning and confirmed it for him. I wasn't even thinking, but he was asking about me falling off of the balcony and like an idiot, I just confirmed that it was me"

"How did he managed to enhance the footage? I thought that was impossible"

"I believe his exact words were 'I'm a scientist with access to a supercomputer'" Kendall replied, letting out a lifeless chuckle as he did so. "And then Carlos did it using the footage as well, but since he already knew it was me that was falling, he didn't need to enhance it. Instead, he just said that things didn't match up, and without saying he knew it was me, he made it pretty clear that he did"

"So, what did they both have to say?" James asked, now running his hands through Kendall's hair. "I mean, they're not going to tell anyone are they?"

"No, they both assured me that they wouldn't, and I trust them enough to believe it. Logan had a load of questions about it though, and I basically had to tell him about how it happened, but just a simplified version of things and Carlos was alright with it as well, but he warned me about some other officers in the police force not agreeing with him, and that I should watch my back" Kendall continued, causing James to twist himself slightly so that he could look Kendall in the eyes.

"Are you worried about that?" James asked, causing Kendall to let out a sigh as he shrugged.

"I'm not sure. I mean, really there is nothing the police force could do to stop me but at the same time, I don't want to get on their bad sides. They're a useful ally to have, and my job would be a lot more difficult without them helping me out, but that's not really what I'm worried about" Kendall replied, before letting out another sigh. "With the more people who know, the risk of my secret getting out there grows, and I know that while they won't intend to tell someone about it, I'm worried someone is going to slip up at some point and accidentally say or do something that's going to give it away. I mean, I kept this secret for eight years, and then in the space of a couple of months, three people know. It's just worrying you know" Kendall said, causing James to nod, the brunet leaning down to place a chaste kiss onto Kendall's lips. The blond dissolved into it immediately, feeling some of his tensions slip away as he did so. "But that's enough about me. Why don't you explain why you quit your job over me" Kendall stated, causing James to shake his head as he rolled his eyes.

"It wasn't over you" James replied, Kendall raising an eyebrow at him. "It's because Griffin's a dick and I hated working for him."

"Yeah, because he made you write negative articles about me"

"Have you always been this self-centred?" James asked, trying to deflect what Kendall had said, but when the blond didn't budge from it, James let out a sigh. "Fine, it was partially over you" he admitted, running his fingers through his own hair. "I just couldn't write that article. I mean, it was so personal to me, and so much shit happened with it, and Griffin wanted me to turn that whole experience into an exposé piece about you, so I said I wouldn't do it, and that I didn't want to write any more pieces about you being a 'menace' so I quit" James finished, causing Kendall to let out a sigh.

"I suppose that's fair, but you do know that you don't owe me anything right? You don't have to write about me because you don't owe me anything James"

"I do though, I owe you everything" James replied, causing a small blush to grow on Kendall's face. "As Camille said, without you I'd still be working late and ordering in take out every night by myself, but you've changed me for the better Kendall, and I owe you for that"

Kendall didn't even respond to that, instead leaning up to place a kiss onto James' lips, one that captured them both as they rearranged themselves so that Kendall was no straddling James. Pulling out of the kiss, Kendall had a grin on his face.

"Alright, but I expect those pieces to be filled with praise about how amazing I am" the blond teased, causing James to let out a chuckle as he wrapped his arms around Kendall's neck.

"They will be, but I feel like there are other ways I could also show my appreciation" James replied, pulling Kendall down into another kiss, one that James quickly dominated.

They both became heated very quickly, with James' hands moving down to cup Kendall's ass while the blond began to feel James' body through his t-shirt. With a grin on his face, ready to this to go further, James pushed himself up from the sofa, lifting Kendall as he did so, causing Kendall to wrap his legs around James as the brunet started to carry him to Kendall's bedroom.

Before James got halfway, however, the TV behind them roared with noise, causing them both to turn around, only to be greeted with the sight of Switchblade's face grinning at them. As Kendall dropped back to his feet, the villain began to speak up, both of them silent as she did so.

* * *

 **So there we have it! James went back to his apartment and has decided to redecorate it! We also had Kendall finally meet Camille and she approves of Kendall, which is great, and then we had Kames talking about the whole situation, with a surprise appearance from Switchblade at the end!**

 **I want to say a massive thank you to Winterschild11, Guest, RainbowDiamonds and EpicallyObsessed for reviewing the last chapter and I'm so glad that you liked it! You all seemed to love that Carlos and Logan finally know, but some of you are concerned that more people are going to find out now and you also seemed glad that James and Camille finally stood up to Griffin, as that was a long time coming!**

 **I will probably see you all next Monday for the next chapter of this, but if I do get time, I will try to get some of Rush and Response written! Anyway, I hope you all have a great week, and until then,**

 **TTFN 😃❄**


	30. Chapter 30

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! Wow, that feels weird to say after all this time! So, just to give a recap of what has happened in the last few chapters; James, Logan and Carlos all know that Kendall is Blizzard and James quit his job at Dispatch Weekly due to Griffin being a dick. The last chapter ended with Kames about to get it on when Switchblade appeared on the TV! So, with that, let's crack on!**

* * *

"I've got ten hostages in the park, I've got ten hostages in the park. If Blizzard don't show, then two will blow, and then I'll have 8 hostages in the park" Switchblade sang to the melody of ten green bottles, causing shivers to go down Kendall's and James' spine. "That's right Blizzard, I've got 10 hostages and every minute that you don't show, I'm going to blow two of them up. If you're not here after 5 minutes, then not only have you killed 10 people, but you'll also have to witness the destruction of my favourite building. No spoilers which one that is though" Switchblade said before the TV switched back to its usual programming.

Knowing what he needed to do, Kendall headed straight into his bedroom, where he started to shed his clothing revealing the suit underneath.

"This must be a trap," James said as he walked into the room after Kendall, causing the blond to look up at him. "I mean, if she's drawing you out like this, surely she's got something planned"

"That doesn't matter. What does matter are the lives of the people she's got hostage" Kendall replied, causing James to let out a sigh as he ran his hands through his hair.

"I know, and I'm not saying you shouldn't go, I just think you should be careful. I mean, we both know what happened last time you fought her and I don't want anything bad to happen to you this time. I mean, what if she actually manages to kill you this time"

"Hey, it's going to be ok," Kendall said, wrapping his arms around the brunet, who was starting to panic. "I know what I'm up against this time, and I promise that I'm going to be ok, but whatever happens to me, I need to make sure that those hostages are safe"

"Don't die on me" James mumbled into Kendall's ear, causing Kendall to pull out of the hug slightly before placing a kiss onto his cheek.

"I won't do, but I want you to stay safe ok?" Kendall asked, causing James to nod as Kendall pulled out of the hug completely.

Walking over to the window, Kendall pulled his mask over his face, concealing his identity before he jumped out of his window, creating an ice slide for him to land on. With one last glance back at James, the blond skated towards the park where Switchblade was being held, hoping to god he'd be able to make it there before she killed one of the hostages.

* * *

"Oh no, it looks like Blizzard hasn't shown. The real question is, who am I going to blow up first. Eeny Meeny, Miny-"

"No," Kendall said, causing Switchblade to spin around, a massive grin on her face.

"Blizzard! You're late, and you know what that means, two of these poor pathetic people have to blow up" Switchblade announced, as Kendall surveyed the situation.

The 10 hostages seemed to have bomb collars around their necks, meaning that Switchblade must have a remote to control them all. All the blond needed to do was get that remote from her, and he'd be able to free the hostages.

"What, no words? You're not doing to defend their lives? Beg me not to blow them up? 'Oh please Switchblade, have mercy on them, and their pathetic lives" Switchblade continued, as Kendall scanned her for the remote, something that he saw she was clutched in her right hand.

"I'm not going to let you do this! You've terrorised this city enough!" Kendall shouted, causing Switchblade to let out a cackle.

"Oh, sweetie, we both know that you can't stop me! I mean, look at last time. If it wasn't for that pretty boy journalist, I'm sure you wouldn't have made it, and this time, I won't make the same mistake!" Switchblade claimed before a grin grew on her face. "But first," Switchblade said, now slightly waving the remote in her hand. "Two have to die" She continued, and just as she was about to push a button on the remote, Kendall shot an ice shard at her.

Time seemed to slow as Kendall watched the shard flying towards her while her thumb began to slowly press down on a button and for a split second, Kendall thought he was too late. The looks on the hostages' faces seemed to think the same but thankfully they all watched as the ice shard struck Switchblade right in her hand, causing her to drop the remote before the button was properly pressed, and that's when time sped up again.

"You bastard!" Switchblade screamed, causing Kendall to leap into action, the blond found himself launching another load of ice shards at her to stop her from reaching down to get the remote, causing her to jump back from it, the remote now sitting an equal distance from the two of them.

As expected, Switchblade pulled a sword from her back with a grin on her face.

"I'm sure you remember this one right? It's the one I stabbed and slashed you with, and this time, I'm going to cut you into little itty-bitty chunks before I blow all of this people to smithereens" Switchblade said, causing Kendall to shake his head.

"No, you're not. This time, you're going down" Kendall replied, causing Switchblade to let out a manic laugh.

"I can't wait to see this happen" she replied, and with one last grin, she took off running towards the remote. Kendall was quick to act as well, running towards the remote himself, and in order to gain the advantage, the blond found himself freezing the ground approaching it before he began to skate at some speed.

The blond was quick to grab the remote from the floor, before looking up only to see Switchblade with her sword level with Kendall's neck. The blond thought fast, as he dropped right down to the floor and slid under Switchblade's legs, narrowly missing the sword that she drove into the ground just after his head passed. Using this opportunity, Kendall grabbed Switchblade's legs and used his momentum to pull her to the ground causing her to let out a yelp as she face-planted the floor.

Getting back up, Kendall tried to freeze her into position with ice, but she was quick to roll out of the way and stand up herself, so Kendall settled for second best, freezing her sword into the ground so that she couldn't pull it back out. The villain yanked hard on the sword twice as she tried to get it to move, but when she couldn't, she let out a very low, loud growl.

"You bastard, that was my favourite sword!" She growled, before reaching on her back to grab the other one as well as a throwing knife. "Now I'm going to have to kill you with these" She stated, before throwing the knife at Kendall as she began to run towards him. Thinking fast, Kendall created an ice shield in front of him, which the knife lodged itself in, and remember this tactic from last time, Kendall was also quick to dodge out of her way before she could reach him. The villain stumbled as she came to a stop, causing Kendall to pull the throwing knife from his shield, and throw it to the ground, freezing it.

"Oh, you remember last time. Shall we see how much you've learnt?" Switchblade said, causing Kendall to grin back at her.

"Oh, I've learnt so much" Kendall replied, his shield at the ready. "Like never to let you act first" Kendall continued, before using his free hand to launch a load of ice shards at her. While Switchblade was busy dodging and slicing them in half, Kendall created an ice ramp for him to skate into the air with. "I've also learnt to not be on the ground with you as that gives you the advantage" Kendall continued, now skating circles around her.

"You really think that you've already won this?" Switchblade asked, laughing as she did so, but Kendall shook his head.

"I don't think I've done anything" Kendall stated, a smirk growing on his face. "But what I do know is that I've managed to free the hostages while you've been distracted" Kendall continued causing Switchblade's eyes to dart over to where the hostages were kneeling on the ground. Now, however, the space was empty and only filled with deactivated bomb collars, causing her to let out a high pitched scream.

"You little bitch, I can't believe you did that! You took my fun away from me, and now you're going to have to pay properly" Switchblade screamed, grabbing a load of her throwing knives and launching a volley of them at Kendall.

Thankfully, because the blond was in the air, he was able to quickly skate out of the way of the incoming knives as well as turn them into blocks of ice, making it extremely difficult for Switchblade to recover them. Kendall knew that in order for him to defeat her, he had to remain level-headed but that he also had to disarm her as much as possible.

Without her weapons, Switchblade would be a lot easier to defeat and Kendall knew that he needed to take advantage of that. The more knives Switchblade threw, the more Kendall dodged and froze them until Switchblade was only left with her second sword, her cyclone throwing knife and the grenades on her bandolier and that caused her to let out another scream.

"You're so fucking dead!" Switchblade screamed as she reached for one of her grenades and threw it at her feet on the ground. Concern was the first thing to cross Kendall's mind and despite the fact that she was a villain, Kendall knew that he didn't want her dead.

Leaping from the ice ring he was skating on, Kendall tackled Switchblade to the ground before creating an ice wall between them and the grenade. The bang it produced was loud, but not as loud as Kendall was expecting and that caused him to be distracted enough for Switchblade to kick him off of her, and escape his grasp. Pulling himself to his feet, Kendall's ears tuned into an awful hissing sound and it was in that moment that the blond realised it was a smoke grenade as the grey smoke began to fog his vision.

"You know, these babies only last about 50 to 90 seconds" Switchblade's voice spoke up from somewhere, causing the blond to try and turn towards it but the smoke was making it very difficult for him to see. "Thankfully, that's all I'm going to need to kill you" Switchblade continued, before she went silent, as did the hissing from the grenade.

With no sight, Kendall knew that this fight was going to get a lot more difficult, but he also knew that he needed to persist and finally bring this to an end. Spinning around in his spot, Kendall tried to focus his ears so that he could listen for Switchblade's location, and when he heard a twig snap on his right-hand side, the blond was quick to dodge in any direction to try and avoid the impact.

Thankfully, Kendall then heard the swish of the blade slicing through the air as well as Switchblade's release of air as he exerted some effort and Kendall knew where to strike. Placing a well-placed kick, Kendall felt his foot connect with Switchblade's abdomen before he reacted fast once again, dodging out of the way of the presumable counterattack Switchblade had planned for him. As predicted, Kendall heard the swish of the blade through the air once again, causing a small grin to grow on his face.

"You forget Switchblade, all I need to do is avoid you for 90 seconds, and then we're back to square one" Kendall smirked, causing the villain to let out a manic cackle.

"Then it's a good thing I have a few of these. Think you can keep this up for a couple of minutes?" Switchblade's voice replied, sounding like it had originated from every direction around him. Kendall tried his best to focus as he tried to pinpoint the origin of the voice, but when he got nothing, he knew he had to do something drastic.

Taking a deep breath, Kendall pointed his hands towards the ground and began to fire a stream of ice at it, causing the ground around him to quickly freeze, being covered with a thin layer of ice. If he couldn't see Switchblade, then the least he could do was make it difficult for her to get close to him.

The perfect stalemate.

As well as that, the ice on the floor also provided him with a reflective surface to look into, meaning that it might be easier for him to spot Switchblade in the mass of fog that the blond saw was slowly beginning to dissipate. The blond knew that he needed to act fast, before Switchblade threw another grenade at the ground, so Kendall began to spin on the spot once again, looking for reflections in the ice.

That's when he heard it, the pin of a grenade being pulled on his left and without even thinking about it, Kendall found himself shooting a beam of ice that way in hopes to freeze the villain in place. The result, however, was just a manic laugh that surrounded him.

"You really thought that would work?" Switchblade asked as more smoke began to fill around Kendall, but then almost instantly, Kendall was blinded up a spotlight shining down from above him. Due to the ice on the ground, the spotlight seemed to reflect back up around him, and he heard the gasp of Switchblade who, Kendall assumed, had also covered his eyes due to its intensity. A loud whirring sound was quick to follow as well, and before long, Kendall watched as the smoke around him all seemed to be pushed in one direction as it passed over him.

Turning towards the source of the sound, Kendall saw that the police had set up a fan to help him, and Kendall was quick to jump on the opportunity. Running towards Switchblade, who was still partially engulfed in the fog, Kendall tackled her to the ground before freezing along the length of her legs as well as her arms causing her to be completely trapped on her front.

Of course, the villain squirmed and tried her to best to fight it, but Kendall was quick, grabbing all of her weapons from her and handing them to the police officers around him. With all of the weapons gone, Kendall finally shattered the ice around Switchblade's wrists, causing the police to quickly move in and pull a straitjacket over her torso before securing her into it.

With that, the ice around her legs was also broken and Kendall watched as the villain was hauled away by a large number of cops. That's when he saw Chief Garcia ordering some junior officers about, and Kendall knew who he needed to thank for the assist. Walking up to the Chief, Kendall overheard the last bit of his orders to them.

"Make sure she's cuffed to the seat and that at least 5 armed guards are watching her. If she makes any sign of escape, they have permission to taser her" Carlos stated, causing the two officers to nod before they walked away.

"Thanks for the assist Chief," Kendall said as soon as Carlos finished, causing Carlos to turn towards him.

"Don't mention it. With all you've done for us, I thought it was about time we helped in any way we could, and those smoke grenades are nasty" Carlos replied, causing a small smile to grow on Kendall's face. "Still, some people aren't happy that I used police resources to help you" Carlos continued, causing Kendall to nod as he picked up the subtle hint Carlos was giving him.

"Well, hopefully, this will be the last time. With Switchblade in cuffs, it means that the city is supervillain free" Kendall replied, casing Carlos to raise an eyebrow at him.

"You really believe that?" Carlos asked, causing Kendall to shake his head almost immediately.

"Not at all, but it's nice to try and think positive for once in a while" Kendall replied, letting out a sigh as he did so. "We need to remain vigilant. Between Pulsewave, Inferno and Switchblade, I'm worried about what we're going to face next. These villains are getting bolder and bolder with each attack and we've already had a fair about to buildings destroyed. Thankfully, the death toll hasn't been too high, but I don't want there to be a day when that changes" Kendall continued, causing Carlos to rub his hands over his head.

"I agree but unfortunately, there's not a lot I can do," Carlos replied, before lowering his voice slightly. "I've heard rumours about cracking down completely on this whole superhero, super villain thing and that includes incarcerating anyway who's wearing a mask. Apparently, some dickhead believes that by bringing everyone in, heroes included, the risk will be completely diminished." Carlos whispered, causing Kendall's eyes to widen.

"I hope you've protested this" the blond stated, causing Carlos to let out another sigh.

"As I said, it's only rumoured, so I can't say anything for sure, but I also know that this will come in from right over my head. Unfortunately, if this is true, there won't be a lot I can do. Hopefully, if we don't get any more villains, this whole thing will settle down, but I recommend keeping a low profile for a couple of days" Carlos continued, causing Kendall to nod.

"Thanks for the warning chief" Kendall smiled before taking his leave. Starting off with a run, Kendall formed an ice slide before taking off into the distance thinking over what Carlos had said.

If the police were going to crack down on everyone then it meant that Kendall might be in some danger, especially considering he'd only tried to do what was best for the city.

* * *

 **So there we have it! The fight with Switchblade happened and this time, Kendall wasn't alone in bringing her down with the help of Carlos and the police force, although that doesn't seem like it'll last for much longer with everything going on! So, once again, welcome back to this story and I'm going to aim to get this up every Monday like I used to do!**

 **I want to say a massive thank you to Winterschild11, Guest, RainbowDiamonds and EpicallyObsessed for reviewing the last chapter and I'm so glad you enjoyed it! You all seemed to like that Kendall and Camille got along and you also think that James should move in with Kendall, so we'll have to wait and see what happens!**

 **I hope you all have a great week and I will see you next Monday for the next chapter of this! But until then,**

 **TTFN 😀❄**


	31. Chapter 31

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! I don't have much to say here, so let's crack on with it shall we?"**

* * *

As soon as Kendall skated back through his window, he was pulled into James' arms, the brunet hugging him tightly.

"Oh thank god you're ok," James said as Kendall returned the hug. "I was so worried! I was watching the whole thing on the TV, but as soon as those smoke grenades went off, I couldn't see anything! I was so worried that something happened to you. You aren't hurt or anything are you?" James continued, as Kendall slowly began to rub the brunet's back.

"I'm ok. I managed to get out of this one injury-free" Kendall replied, causing James to let out a sigh of relief as he finally pulled away.

"Come on, sit down, you must be exhausted," James said, now pulling Kendall towards the sofa before pushing the blond down onto it. With that done, James headed over to the kitchen and pulled two bottles of beer from it.

"Can I expect this every time I get back from being a superhero?" Kendall chuckled, causing James to let out a small blush as he opened the bottles and brought them over to the blond.

"Only if I can get an exclusive interview from you every time you do" James replied, causing Kendall to let out a little chuckle as James passed him one of the bottles.

"So that's what this is huh? You're buttering me up so that you can get all of the exclusive details?" Kendall asked, causing James to blush slightly as he shrugged, taking a sip.

"Think of it more as a way for you to get your word out there from a blog dedicated to you" James replied, letting out a little chuckle as he did so. "But that's enough about that at the moment, I really just want to know if you're ok" James continued, reaching over to grab Kendall's still suit covered hand.

"I'm fine James really. I'm just relieved that this whole thing with Switchblade is over. I was always worried about going up against her after last time, so I'm just glad that it's out of the way" Kendall stated, causing James to nod as the blond took a sip of his beer.

"I have to admit though, I am curious. How did you manage to free the hostages? One minute they were all kneeling down and the next thing, they were all running away. It wasn't very clear from the news" James stated, causing Kendall to let out a little chuckle before he sipped his beer.

"I was able to get the remote from Switchblade. She was just about to blow up the first two hostages but before she could, I managed to catch her hand with an ice shard causing her to drop the remote. Before she could pick it back up, I was able to slide under her legs and grab it and in the commotion that followed, with her trying to get the sword out of the ground, I was able to deactivate the collars. From there, it was just a matter of keeping her distracted long enough for the hostages to get to safety." Kendall explained, causing James to nod alongside him.

"Well, it certainly worked. I watched them all run off, and I could see the smiles on their faces, they were so happy to be free" James stated, causing a small smile to grow on Kendall's face briefly before he thought back to what Carlos said. Noticing the look on Kendall's face, James squeezed his hand. "You sure you're ok?" James asked, causing Kendall to let out another sigh.

"I can't stop thinking about something Carlos said" Kendall replied, glancing down at the floor as he did so. "Apparently there's a rumour going around that the police are going to start cracking down on anyone that's wearing a mask, both villain and hero."

"That can't be true" James interrupted, squeezing Kendall's hand once again. "I mean, you've done so much good for this city and the police would be foolish to bring you in. After all, you haven't done anything wrong" James continued, causing Kendall to nod.

"I know, but if the police decide they're going to start bringing anyone with a mask in, then I'm worried I'm doing to have to do something I regret. I mean, I can't let them bring me in, I need my identity to remain as secret as possible, but that means that the only alternatives are to either give this up, or if push comes to shove, go up against the police if they try to get me" Kendall continued, taking another sip of his drink.

"Carlos said that this is only a rumour right?" James asked, causing Kendall to nod. "Then I suggest that you try not to worry about it too much. I mean, at the end of the day, you could worry about this nothing as it might not happen." James continued, before letting out a sigh. "But, I also think that maybe _Kendall_ should have a chat to him as well and try to come up with a plan of action in case this does go through. I mean, we all know that this city is a lot safer with you here and if you stop, then the crime rate is going to skyrocket. Maybe with Carlos' help, you can still continue to do what you're doing while also avoiding the police" James finished, causing Kendall to nod, finishing off his bottle.

"You're right as always" Kendall stated, leaning up to give James a kiss on the lips. "But that's enough about that I believe we were in the middle of something before I was called away" Kendall continued, a small sparkle growing in his eye causing James to grin.

"Were we? You'll have to remind me what we were doing" The brunet replied, causing Kendall to pull James into a passionate kiss.

All of a sudden, the two were back to where they were before Kendall was pulled away, with his legs wrapped around James' waist as the brunet carried him to the bedroom, the two of them finally grateful that they could do this again.

* * *

The two men laid panting in Kendall's bed as they came down, Kendall's head resting on James' chest while James played with his hair. Everything just felt right at that moment, with the two of them feeling completely relaxed and comfortable in each other's arms. Taking one last deep breath, Kendall leaned up and placed a kiss onto James' lips, the brunet smiling as he did so.

"That was nice," Kendall said as he placed his head back onto James' chest causing the brunet to nod.

"It was. You deserve some time to just be yourself, especially with all of the revelations that have been going on today. I mean, you had Logan and Carlos finding out"

"Finding out you quit your job and are starting your own blog" Kendall interrupted, causing James to let out a little chuckle as he nodded.

"And you had the fight with Switchblade plus what Carlos told you afterwards. That's just been today, Kendall. You need some time to just relax and be yourself" James finished, causing Kendall to nod into his chest.

"I know, and hopefully now that Switchblade has been defeated, I'll be able to get that," Kendall stated, causing a small smile to grow on James' face.

"I am really happy that you're safe you know. I was really worried about you after last time, but today, you really showed how much of a hero you truly are" James stated, causing Kendall to let out a little chuckle.

"Trust me, I wasn't always like that. It took a while for me to get used to my powers" Kendall replied, causing James to raise his eyebrow slightly.

"Am I finally going to learn the rest of your story?" James asked, causing Kendall to shift on him slightly so that he was glancing up on James.

"Do you want to?" Kendall asked, causing James to nod as he smiled back down.

"Of course! I love learning about you Kendall. I want to know anything you'll tell me about you" James replied, causing Kendall to lean up and place a kiss on James' lips.

"I love you," Kendall said, the smile on his own face huge as he spoke again. "Do you remember where I got up to?"

"The last thing you told me was when you got into the shower and the water froze around you, and you hit your head but didn't get injured," James replied, causing Kendall to nod as settled himself down on James' chest for the last time, getting comfortable.

"Right, so the next thing that happened was the day after that when I was sat in the cafeteria at school-"

* * *

" _Hey Kendall" Kendall heard as he was sat at a table in the cafeteria, causing him to look up only to see his friends looking down at him. "We missed you on your birthday on Saturday." Kendall's friend, and crush, Dak continued causing Kendall to blush slightly._

 _"Sorry guys. I wasn't allowed out of the orphanage" Kendall lied, glancing down at his plate as he did so. The bad thoughts he'd experienced on Saturday about his friends not caring about him tried to reappear in his mind but as he looked up at his friend's smiling faces, Kendall slowly began to realise that they weren't true._

 _"Well, since we couldn't give you your presents them, I thought we could give them to you now," Jo said, causing Kendall to nod as he smiled at them._

 _"You guys didn't need to get me anything" Kendall replied, causing Dak to shake his head as he sat down opposite Kendall._

 _"Nonsense, it's your 14_ _th_ _Birthday!" Dak continued, as Jo handed him a medium-sized present._

 _"Go on, open it. It's from both of us" Jo said, causing Dak to smile alongside her as Kendall began to pull away the wrapping paper. As he did so, a photo frame was revealed, containing a load of photos of the three of them together causing a small blush to grow on Kendall's face._

 _"Guys, this is incredible!" Kendall said as he stared down at the photos, smiling as he did so._

 _Seeing his favourite photo of the three of them together, Kendall felt the need to press down onto the glass as if to reconnect him with the moment and as he placed one finger over the photo, he quickly saw that the glass began to freeze around his finger._

 _Seeing that, he was quick to pull his finger away, panic seeing in slightly, something that Dak and Jo noticed. "_

 _You alright?" the two of them asked, causing Kendall to nod as he plastered a false smile on his face._

 _"Yeah, I'm ok. Thank you guys for the present really, it's amazing! I just…um…have to nip to the toilet. But I'll talk to you later" Kendall said, as he shoved the photo frame into his bag before running off towards the most secluded toilet block in the school._ _Getting into it, Kendall was quick to walk up to the sink and turn on the hot tap._

 _"What the fuck is going on with me!" Kendall spoke out loud as he looked down at his hands with fear present on his face. Seeing that the hot water from the tap was now releasing steam as it flowed, Kendall put his fingers under the flow, feeling it run over his fingers slightly._

 _Finally, Kendall took a deep breath as he closed his eyes, grateful that everything was ok but as he went to splash the water over his face, he was instead greeted with the sound of something snapping in half._

 _Opening his eyes to see what caused the sound, Kendall was greeted with the sight of an ice sculpture in the shape of flowing water now laying in the sink causing him to take a few steps back from the tap as his heart rate increased dramatically._

 _"Kendall, are you in here?" He heard asked as the door opened, causing the blond to look over, only to see Dak enter. As soon as Kendall caught sight of Dak, he crossed the room and found himself hugging his friend out of panic. "Woah dude, you're freezing! Is everything ok?" Dak said, causing Kendall to feel himself as if to verify what Dak has said._

 _T_ _ouching his face, Kendall thought that he felt a normal temperature but with everything that was going on, he couldn't even trust that the moment._

 _"You can tell me what's wrong," Dak said, causing Kendall to shake his head slightly as he pulled out of the hug. There was no way that he could tell Dak about it, as the brunet would think that he was crazy, yet if he showed him, Dak would then think he was a freak._

 _Thinking on his feet, Kendall came up with something else, stating that he's just going through a rough patch at the moment mentally. It certainly wasn't a lie, but it wasn't exactly the truth either. That's when Dak pulled Kendall into another hug._

 _"You can always talk to me if you need to Kendall, I'm here for you and I promise everything is going to be alright" Dak replied, causing Kendall to nod briefly into Dak's chest. "Now come on, let's go get you warmed up" Dak continued as he finally pulled away._

 _Following Dak's lead, the two boys walked back into the hallway and as they did so, the PA system started up._

 _"This is an announcement. The school currently does not have any running water due to the supply being frozen. This, unfortunately, means that toilets, sinks and water fountains will not work. For drinking water, please head for the cafeteria as they are providing free bottles while we sort out this issue" blared over the PA causing Kendall to panic massively._

 _"Damn, I knew it was cold, but I didn't realise it was that cold" Dak said causing Kendall to let out a nervous laugh beside him._

 _The blond had a feeling that this wasn't due to the cold weather whatsoever and had something to do with his little…incident in the toilet._

* * *

"God, that must have really freaked you out, especially hearing that announcement over the PA system," James said as he idly stroked Kendall's hair, causing Kendall to nod.

"Oh yeah, I was massively freaking out. I mean, freezing the hot water was bad enough, but freezing the entire water supply for the school, that took some doing trying to keep myself together" Kendall replied, snuggling up to James a little bit more, loving the feeling of James' hands carding through his hair.

"So, what happened next? What did you do?" James asked, causing Kendall to let out a soft breath.

"I think for the rest of the day at school, I avoided water entirely. I'm pretty sure that I didn't even lift a water bottle to take a drink, I was so scared. I mean, I froze hot water, so I was terrified about what I was going to do with room temperature stuff. After school finished, however, I headed back down to the lake as I wanted to try and get some sort of idea as to what was going on."

* * *

 **So there we have it! We had a bit more of cute Kames, with the two of them chatting after Kendall's battle with Switchblade and we've started to learn a bit more of Kendall's past! As you can probably expect, the next chapter will be about Kendall starting to learn how to use his powers!**

 **I want to say a massive thank you to Winterschild11, Guest, RainbowDiamonds and EpicallyObsessed for reviewing the last chapter, and I'm so glad that you enjoyed it! You all seemed glad that Kendall defeated Switchblade and I felt like with her being around for about 16 chapters that it was time for her to go! Also, I hope this also clears up how Kendall managed to free the hostages as there was a little bit of confusion about that! You all seemed convinced as well as there's another villain around the corner, but I'm not going to comment on that 😜**

 **I hope you've all had a great week, and I will see you next Monday for the next chapter of this! But until then,**

 **TTFN 😀❄**

 **P.S. I'm glad that RainbowDiamond's is happy that the snowflake is back! ❄❄**


	32. Chapter 32

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! Sorry for missing last week, I kinda got distracted playing Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order but I'm back now! All I can say is that the temptation to write a Star Wars like story is strong, but much like the dark side, I'm resisting it! Anyway, that's enough rambling from me, so let's crack on, shall we?**

* * *

 _Kendall knew the walk to the lake like the back of his hand by this point, which meant that he spent the entire walk contemplating what has gone on in school earlier that day. Thankfully, they managed to get the water working once again but Kendall was horrified by the fact that one single touch from him had managed to freeze the water supply. What wasn't helping either was the fact that everything Kendall seemed to touch froze as well, with the picture frame given to him earlier being a prime example of that. Luckily, the glass hadn't frozen completely or broken so it was alright now but as he walked, Kendall couldn't help but think about what this meant for his future._

 _Would he no longer be able to touch anything? He thought to himself, but he quickly shook his head. Dak hadn't frozen when Kendall had hugged him earlier, but Dak certainly had noticed that Kendall's body temperature was a lot lower than it should have been. Ok, so he could still touch people, but what about objects. The glass from the picture frame had frozen, so once again, did that meant that he couldn't touch anything?_

 _Another thought answered that question for him. 'Your clothes aren't frozen to you' Kendall's brain supplied, causing the blond to look down his top and jeans, before pulling his top away from his body slightly. As expected, the top pulled away with his finger, causing Kendall to let out a sigh._

 _This was all too much for him._

 _His mind was racing at a hundred miles an hour, coming up questions that he just didn't have the answer to. Thankfully, he reached the lake not long after that and as he looked out over the water, he couldn't help but have flashbacks to a couple of nights ago. The negative thoughts were still plaguing his mind, but with everything that was going on, Kendall just didn't have time to listen to them._

 _To be honest, it was probably for the best._

 _Shaking the thoughts from his mind, Kendall focused back onto the task at hand, figuring out what the hell was happening to him and if you could, also why it was happening to him. Out of instinct, Kendall took one step closer to the lake, hovering his shoe over the still flowing water as he did so. Really, there was only one way to test what was happening with him, and whether it was repeatable so taking a deep breath, Kendall brought his hovering foot down towards the water._

 _The blond closed his eyes, waiting for his ankle to be surrounded by the cold liquid, but instead, his foot hit a solid object. Opening his eyes, Kendall saw that the water around his foot had frozen causing Kendall to let out a sigh of relief._

 _At least he wasn't going crazy as this was definitely happening to him._

 _Of course, now came more questions. What else could he do?_

 _With another deep breath, Kendall brought his other foot onto the ice before taking another step forward. The water froze into ice once again, this time as Kendall witnessed it and he was amazed by what had happened. As soon as his foot was even hovering over the section, it began to freeze and as he brought his foot closer to the water, it began to freeze at a more rapid rate until a small area around it was frozen as well._

 _Dropping to his knees, Kendall felt the urge to place just one finger into the water, curious as to what effect that would have. It was less pronounced than with his whole foot, but the effect was the same. The closer his finger got to the water, the more of it froze around him until a patch of ice barely bigger than the top of his hand had formed, just from one finger alone. Pushing himself back up from the floor, Kendall began to slowly make his way across the rest of the lake, the blond curious to see how much of the lake would freeze if he walked all the way across it._

 _He was still slightly hesitant when it came to walking over it however, worried that with one wrong step, all of the ice would shatter and that he'd be plunged into the dark icy water much like what had happened many years before. Gradually though, Kendall made his way further and further into the lake, and with his eyes so focused on the ice forming in front of him, he didn't notice that he'd reached the other side until his foot hit a patch of dirt._

 _He was quick to scramble onto it before turning around to see the damage caused. Right down the middle of the lake was essentially a bridge of ice that Kendall had walked across but water still flowed either side of it. Another thought popped into Kendall's head, riskier than the last but this time, that didn't deter him._

 _T_ _he first step back onto the ice was still slightly hesitant but once he was sure the ice wouldn't collapse beneath him, he put his full weight on it again. Taking another deep breath, Kendall began to run across the ice slightly before he began to slide across it. The blond tried his best to balance himself as he slid and once he was fairly positive that he had some semblance of control, Kendall found himself doing the insane._

 _Shifting his bodyweight, Kendall began to slide towards the left side of the lake, which was still water, curious as to whether the water would freeze fast enough for him to keep up his momentum. The water got closer and while Kendall really wanted to close his eyes, he knew that he couldn't miss this. He was going at some speed by this point and as soon as his first foot began to hover over the water, for a brief second, Kendall was convinced that he was going to be submerged but he wasn't._

 _The water simply froze in front of him, causing Kendall to let out another sigh, this time as he tried to slid even faster across the ice, heading towards another section of water. As he reached it, the same thing happened, with the water simply freezing over as he slid across it, causing a massive smile to grow on Kendall's face._

 _Sure, this whole thing was messed up, but even Kendall couldn't deny how awesome it was at the same time, especially when he was having fun with it like he was now._

* * *

 _Kendall must have skated around the lake for about 10 minutes before he stopped, the blond finally finding some enjoyment from this whole situation. This is the first time for a while that Kendall remembered himself smiling for a prolonged period of time, so he wanted to make the most of it while he could. Still, when it came to an end, Kendall has another idea in mind._

 _He kept thinking back to the first time when he was at the lake when he threw his arms down to the ground and two ice shards lodged themselves in it, and he wondered if he could repeat that again. It was almost if he was now consumed with wanting to know what he could do, his teenage mind accepting that this whole thing was actually happening to him. So, as Kendall stood on the edge of the lake, he tried to focus on forming an ice shard._

 _The only problem was, Kendall didn't know why one formed the first time. 'Maybe it was the way you moved your arms' His brain supplied, causing Kendall to try and remember what he did. The blond remember swinging his arms down towards the ground hard, so Kendall tried that, the blond readying himself for the result. Except, nothing happened. As Kendall's arms dropped, nothing flew out of them or lodged itself into the ground, causing Kendall to let out a sigh of annoyance._

 _Still, he didn't let the one failed attempt deter him from trying again, this time with him trying to picture what he was creating in his mind. He brought his arms down to the ground once again, this time with his eyes closed to see if that would help, but when he opened them, nothing was lodged in the ground again. Another deep breath was taken, and Kendall tried again._

 _And again._

 _And again._

 _But nothing happened._

 _T_ _he fun he was having earlier had quickly drained away, instead being replaced with a sense of annoyance._

 _"Why can't I do this?" Kendall asked himself, looking down at his hands for a brief second before shaking his head. "Forget it, it's stupid anyway" Kendall huffed out before throwing his right arm out as he turned around._

 _As he did so, he heard the air behind him whistling before a loud thud sounded causing him to quickly turn around on the spot. His eyes widened in shock at the sight that greeted him, with an ice shard being lodged right through the middle of one of the nearby trees. A look of shock grew on Kendall's face as he ran up to the tree and examined the damage that had been caused._

 _The shard had gone straight through the middle of the tree and out the other side, causing Kendall to look down at his hands, the blond both proud that he'd finally made an ice shard but also slightly scared at what he'd done. If he can cause one to go right through the middle of a tree, what else is he capable of. That thought caused a renewed determination in Kendall, with the blond know that he needed to try and get this under control as much as he could._

 _The last thing he needed was to injure someone severely because he got angry._

* * *

"I continued to train for the rest of the day, but I couldn't seem to form another one. Still, I tried not to get annoyed this time as, to be perfectly honest, I was kinda scared at what would happen" Kendall stated, letting out a soft sigh as he did so before glancing up at James. The brunet was staring down with awe in his eyes at what Kendall had said, causing a small smile to grow on Kendall's face.

"I have to admit, I think you reacted a lot better than I would in that situation. If I saw that I'd lodge a shard in a tree, I probably would have screamed" James admitted, causing Kendall to let out a little chuckle.

"There was definitely a small part of me that wanted too but I think more than anything, I was actually a little bit excited about it" Kendall stated, letting out a sigh as he did so. "For so long, I'd convinced myself that I wasn't anything special and I think this was the first time that I realised I was, that there was something unique about me and I was really happy about that" he continued, causing James to tilt Kendall's head up towards him.

"You are special Kendall, and that isn't just because of your powers. You're smart, you're kind and generous and you're always looking out for other people, that's what makes you special." James replied, a genuine smile on his face before a small glint shined in his eyes. "Well that, and your incredibly good looks" James continued, causing Kendall to let out a small chuckle.

"Thank you, and I realise that now, but when I was younger, I didn't think about it like that. This was finally something different about me and for once, I actually felt like I had a purpose" Kendall replied, causing James to place a kiss on Kendall's lips to show him that he was there for him always. The two of them lulled into silence for a few seconds before James spoke up again.

"So how long did it take for you to get control of your powers?" he asked, causing Kendall to shuffle on his chest again, getting comfortable.

"It must have been a good couple of weeks. Every day after school, I went out to the lake to practise, whether it be forming an ice shard or in some cases, not freezing everything I touched as I knew I needed to stop doing that if I didn't want people to know. Plus, some people started picking up on the fact that I wasn't drinking a lot in the day, and even though I hadn't thought about it, I realised that I wasn't getting dehydrated. Still, I needed to keep up appearances, so I started to try and stop freezing stuff."

"I'm guessing that went well" James stated with a little chuckle, causing Kendall to nod.

"You're not frozen, so you could say so" Kendall replied, letting out his own chuckle as he did so. "But, to answer your question, it was about two weeks after I started practising that I finally formed one without being angry. I was down at the lake-"

* * *

 _Kendall let out a deep breath as he focused on what he was doing. He'd been practising every day after school to try and form an ice shard and while he always got close, he could never quite get there. In the process however, he'd learnt that he could shoot a beam of ice out from his hand so while he wasn't making progress in the thing he wanted, he was still improving overall._

 _Shaking his whole body, as some sort of ritual to get himself ready, Kendall focused his mind back onto the task at hand, pointing his arm straight out towards the line of trees in front of him._ _As usual, he pictured the thing that he wanted to create in his mind, before taking a deep breath as he watched the beginnings of an ice shard form in his palm._

 _Kendall was still in awe by this process, with the object physically forming from his palm but he tried not to think about it too hard. When a small shard was present in his hand, Kendall then tried to project the object outward but just like usual, the shard simply fell to the ground, rattling as it hit the ice._

 _A sigh escaped Kendall's mouth as he looked down at the slowly melting ice shard. '_

 _You just had to try again until you get it' His brain supplied, causing Kendall to nod. Before he did that however, Kendall decided to take a small break. He'd already been at the lake for an hour by this point, and still, nothing had happened. Turning back around, and walking towards his bag on the bank of the lake, Kendall smiled as he thought back to all of the superhero video's he'd watched online, thinking back to how they did it in the movies._

 _Of course, they were entirely fake, but Kendall always thought it would be fun to try and re-enact what they were doing. With a smile on his face, Kendall found himself quickly spinning around on the spot before bringing both hands up and pretending to fire things out of him, making the sound effects as he did so. As he did that however, he quickly noticed projectiles flying out of them, causing him to stop and stare at his hands._

 _Shock was written all over his face, but he tried it again, opening his palms in rapid bursts instead of doing it slowly as he had been, and lo and behold, ice shards were flying out of his hands and into a tree on the other side of the lake. Kendall couldn't help but let out a yell of joy at what he'd managed to achieve, but that's when he heard it. The sound of splintering and as Kendall glanced back up at the far tree, he noticed the object tilting to one side._

 _In his excitement, Kendall had accidentally carved right through the right side of the tree, causing it to lean that way. It wasn't long after that Kendall watched as the tree toppled to the ground, causing a loud thud as it did so. Silence then fell over them, Kendall just switching between staring at the toppled tree, and staring his hands before he let out another scream of shock as he went running up to examine the damage he'd caused._

 _"Oh my god, I can't believe I did this! I did this!" Kendall said as he stared at the tree on the ground, looking at the ice shards, some of which were still very much present. He still couldn't quite believe that he'd done that, mostly because he was still shocked that he'd actually created the ice shards in the first place but that didn't stop him from trying again._

 _R_ _apidly opening his hands a couple more time, Kendall watched as more ice shards lodged themselves in the fallen tree causing him to raise his hands in the air in victory. After two weeks, he'd finally mastered the skill and boy was he excited about it._ _Out of victory, Kendall found himself kicking the tree, fully expecting the object to lodged where it was. Instead however, as his foot connected with it, the blond watched as the log rolled about a foot away from him._

 _Excitement dropped for a brief second, now being replaced with curiosity as Kendall found himself walking up to the tree and kicking it again, this time with a little more force. The tree rolled further his time, Kendall following it as it did so, and once it stopped, Kendall found himself trying something else._

 _Walking to the head of the tree, Kendall placed both hands under the log and began to try and lift it. With ease the log lifted off of the ground, causing Kendall to become distracted for a brief second. His arms wavered, causing Kendall to drop the log and take a step back as it hit the ground._

 _Staring at his hands once again, the blond realised that there was a lot more to this power than he'd first imagined, and after the success of today, he was excited to figure everything out._

* * *

 **So there we have it! A little bit more of Kendall's backstory, learning about how he got control of his powers!**

 **I want to say a massive thank you to Guest, Winterschild11, EpicallyObsessed and RainbowDiamonds for reviewing the last chapter and I'm so glad that you liked it! You all seem to love James and Kendall together, which really is great and you all seemed super excited to learn about Kendall's backstory so I hope you enjoyed this chapter!**

 **I hope you all have a great week and I will see you next Monday for the next chapter of this! But until then,**

 **TTFN 😀❄**


	33. Chapter 33

**Hi Guys and welcome to back to Blizzard! As you can see, this chapter is short than the usual ones, mostly because I haven't had a lot of time to get one written this week with all my deadlines coming up. Still, I didn't want to leave you guys without a chapter, so I quickly whipped this up! Sorry if it's a bit naff!**

* * *

"I say again, you reacted a lot better than I would in that situation," James said as Kendall finished, causing the blond to let out a little chuckle. "I mean, doing all of that to then find out that you have super strength, I probably would have freaked out" James continued, causing Kendall to glance up at him.

"I don't think you give yourself enough credit. I'm sure you would have been able to handle it just fine. I mean, you handled finding out my secret pretty well" Kendall replied, causing James to let out a soft sigh.

"I suppose that's true. But then again, it's a little different finding out your boyfriend has superpowers to finding out you do" James stated, causing Kendall to snuggle into him a little bit more.

"If anything, I think that makes you braver. I don't think I could be you, watching the person you love go out and risk their lives every day. That takes real bravery James" Kendall said, causing James' cheeks to heat up slightly at the compliment.

"You know just what to say" James replied, placing his hand under Kendall's chin to bring the blond up for a kiss. When Kendall settled back down onto James' chest, the brunet spoke up again. "That brings me to another thing I was wondering about," James said idly, causing Kendall to glance up at him. "When was the first time you fought crime? I mean, finding out that you have superpowers is one thing, but actively using them to help people is another" James continued, finally glancing down at Kendall, with love and interest in his eyes.

It seemed James would never bore of hearing Kendall's story, and that spread a small warmth to Kendall's heart. With a smile on his face, Kendall took a deep breath before speaking up, readying himself to tell another story.

"It must have been a couple of weeks after I'd gotten used to my powers-"

* * *

 _Even after Kendall had gotten used to his powers, he spent every day after school at the lake. He was fascinated by what he could do, and what powers he had, especially after his incident with the tree. The blond had quickly learned that he had some sort of super-strength, with him being able to lift the fallen trees back up. He'd also tested with discreetly with a few things around the orphanage and quickly discovered that he still had some limitations, like not being able to lift the entire building out of its foundations. Still, Kendall spent his evenings' training and practising, the blond now finding a new renewal for life._

 _The negative thoughts he'd once been having had seemed to only emerge occasionally, with them mostly being drowned out by the curiosity that this whole endear brought with it. As well as that, Kendall had found a new interest in his life, the blond quickly becoming fascinated with ice and how it worked, as well as anything that could have caused this to happen to him._

 _He was like a new person, dedicating himself to his subjects as he tried to discover what had caused this to happen, as well as what properties ice had that he could see if he also obtained._

 _Still, all of this didn't stop the misery that he endured at the orphanage on a daily basis. The nuns were still horrible to him and everyone else, but Kendall was slowly learning to block out what they said and to try not to let it get to him. After all, he now had something that no one could take away from him._

 _That didn't mean that he still didn't have bad days, and today was certainly one of them, with the blond finding himself being kicked out of the orphanage late on a Friday night. It seemed like Miss Blanchard had it out especially for Kendall tonight, forcing the blond to do all of the chores he'd apparently missed during the course of the week, before then kicking him out so that he could 'learn his lesson.'_

 _This time, Kendall took it in his stride, not worrying about getting cold, and instead of going into the woods, Kendall found himself heading down the main track towards town. They must have been a half an hour walk away from town, but with nothing better to do, Kendall decided to go for it. At least this way, he'd be able to buy himself something to eat. As he walked into town, Kendall found himself creating little snowflakes in his hand, keeping himself occupied as he walked._

 _After learning that each snowflake was unique, Kendall was insistent on seeing whether this was actually true or not, and that included forming many snowflakes to try and see if some of them looked the same. This lasted about 15 minutes before the blond saw something else land on his hand. Glancing up at the sky, Kendall felt a small drop of water land on his forehead, causing him to pull his hood up over his face._

 _These last few weeks had also included Kendall learning how to control the power that was radiating out from him, meaning that he could now touch water without freezing it, immediately at least, and as Kendall walked into town the blond knew that it would look weird if he arrived completely dry._

 _That did mean, however, getting completely soaked by the rain, something that Kendall was never a fan off and it also meant that the latter 15 minutes of walking into town felt like they dragged on forever, with the blond not being able to keep himself occupied without raising suspicion. As the blond finally saw the neon lights of the gas station marking the edge of town in the distance, he couldn't help the small smile that grew on his face._

 _Picking up the pace slightly, mostly because his stomach was starting to rubble, Kendall made his way towards the station, hoping that he'd be able to pick up a cheap sandwich and something to drink. That plan seemed to fall through very quickly however, as when Kendall approached the gas station, he could see the owner with his hands raised in the air. Ducking down as he moved closer to the window, Kendall saw that there was another man in the store, pointing a gun at the owner._

 _"Put the fucking money in the bag!" Kendall heard the masked robber shout, causing the shopkeeper to nod as he slowly lowered his hands down and opened the cash registered._

 _Kendall, on the other hand, was reviewing his options._

 _He could just walk away now and pretend that he didn't see anything, but there was a voice in his mind telling him that he shouldn't do that. He'd been given these powers for a reason, and perhaps this was it, perhaps he was meant to help people._

 _That's when he heard the door to the garage slam open and Kendall watched as the masked robber began to run into a dark back alley. Kendall wasn't quite sure what came over him, but he found himself running after the robber, following him into the dark alleyway and as he caught up with the robber, Kendall found himself shooting a beam of ice at the ground, causing the robber to quickly fall to the floor, as his gun went flying from his hand._

 _"It's not nice to steal from people" Kendall found himself saying, not quite sure where this confidence was coming from but rolling with it anyway._

 _"Who the fuck are you?" the robber asked, flipping over to that he could stare at the blond._

 _"Someone who's not going to let you get away with hurting people" Kendall replied and when he saw the robber reaching for the gun, he shot an ice shard at him. It was only small but enough to cut across the palm of the robber's hand, who quickly retracted it, pulling it towards his chest as if to cradle it._

 _"What the fuck? You're a freak!" The robber said, throwing the money towards Kendall. "Here, take it! Just, don't hurt me!" The robber continued, causing Kendall to shake his head._

 _"Oh, I'm not going to hurt you," Kendall said, before shooting a beam of ice at the robber's feet, freezing them to the ground. "But I am going to leave you here for the police to find" Kendall continued, picking up the money as he did so, before running around and running away._

 _As the blond ran from the alley, back towards the garage, he could already hear the sirens coming towards him, with the garage owner being stood outside waiting._ _With the bag of money in his hand and his face hidden by his hood, Kendall approached him._

 _"I believe this belongs to you," Kendall said as he approached, handing the bag back to the man._

 _"What? You got this back for me?" The man asked, obviously shocked that someone of Kendall's size could have stopped the guy. "How did you do that?"_

 _"That doesn't matter. What does is that you have what rightly belongs to you and that the person who robbed you will be put away for doing so" Kendall replied, before turning to walk away._

 _"Wait, at least let me repay you! It's the least I can do" The garage owner said, causing Kendall to shake his head._

 _"No, you don't have to do that" Kendall replied, but as he did so, his stomach rumbled, causing the garage owner to let out a little chuckle._

 _"At least take a sandwich and a drink for your trouble," the guy said, causing a small blush to grow on Kendall's face, not that the guy could see. Making sure to keep his face covered, Kendall grabbed some bits from the garage before walking back towards the orphanage._

 _As he did so, a massive smile sat on his face as a good feeling sat in his stomach, and not just because of the sandwich. Kendall felt really good about helping that guy out, and deep down, something told him that he was going to be doing this a lot more often._

* * *

 **So there we have it! Like I said, very short but I thought it might be nice to see Kendall stop his very first crime! Don't worry, the story will be back up to its normal length next time, but I just wanted to get something out today!**

 **I want to say a massive thank you to Guest, Winterschild11, RainbowDiamonds and EpicallyObsessed for reviewing the last chapter and I'm so glad you liked it! You're certainly right, Kendall certainly did have a lot to learn and I'm so glad that you're loving learning about his backstory! I'm not sure how much more of it we'll get now, but you can be sure that if I think of anything, I'll pop it in! Also, the idea of a Star Wars-esque story seemed to pick up some traction, so let me finish this one off first (and Colony, since I also need to see how I feel about that) and I'll get back to you 😜**

 **Anyway, I hope you all had a great week and that you all have a great week, and I will see you next Monday! But until then,**

 **TTFN😀❄**


	34. Chapter 34

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! First off, I just wanted to say thank you for all the kind words about all my deadlines and that! Most of them are in now, The last one being my dissertation 😭, so I can relax a little bit now!**

 **Also, some other news from my personal life that I really wanted to share is that next year, I'm going to the USA! I'm super excited about this as I'm going to so many places, but I just thought I'd share it with you! Don't worry, it's not until May 2020, so it's a little ways out but I'm just super hyped about it! Anyway, that's enough from me, so let's get on with this chapter! I've focused a lot on Kendall recently, so I thought it might be nice to have a chapter or two revolving around James!**

 **Anyway, let's crack on!**

* * *

"So, that's how it started huh? You wanted a sandwich" James stated, causing Kendall to let out a little chuckle as he swatted James on the chest.

"Is that all you got from that story? That I was hungry?" Kendall asked, causing James' eyes to widen slightly as it to suggest it was. "Unbelievable" Kendall replied, shaking his head as he swatted him again before he went to sit up. As he did that, James wrapped his arms around the blond, pulling him in close once again.

"You know for certain that it wasn't, and I think it's extremely brave that you wanted to help that guy out" James replied, causing Kendall to snuggle up into him once again. "I'm guessing after that, you just started to patrol at night?" James asked, causing Kendall to nod into his chest.

"Pretty much. I think I got myself a ski mask so that I could hide my face and I started to walk around the town looking for anything shady. To be perfectly honest with you, I probably looked like the shadiest thing in the town but at the time, it was the best I could do" Kendall said, causing James to let out a little chuckle. "As I got older, I realised that I needed something else to dress in, so I eventually came up with the Blizzard suit" Kendall finished, glancing up at James. "But that's enough about me. We've been talking about me all night, I want to hear about you" Kendall said, causing James to glance down at him slightly.

"Me? I've haven't got any stories that compare to that one, and the one I sort of had, I told you on our first date" James replied, referring to him telling Kendall about how he got into journalism.

"Still, I'm curious about you. Surely the son of Henry Diamond must have some stories. Trips to exotic locations around the world, or the fanciest parties" Kendall continued, causing James to shake his head.

"Not really. Up until my mum died, I'd spend most of my time with her while dad went off to the exotic locations and then after that, I was sort of by myself. Dad said that I was old enough to look after myself at 17, so when he'd go on trips, I was home alone" James replied, causing Kendall's expression to soften slightly.

"Can you tell me about her?" Kendall asked, causing James to raise his eyebrow at Kendall.

"What, my mum?" James questioned, causing Kendall to nod.

"Yeah. You haven't really spoken a lot about her, but from that, I could tell that she meant a lot to you"

"She meant the world to me" James stated, the brunet now refusing to make eye contact with Kendall, knowing that he always got emotional talking about his mum. "She was kind and caring, always looking after me. She was there when I woke up in the mornings, and always at home when I got back from school, with a drink ready and some snacks so I could tell her all about my day. It made Dad being around not as noticeable as she was always there, looking after me" James continued, already feeling the tears welling in his eyes. "When we found out that she had stage 4 throat cancer, we all didn't know what to do with ourselves. We tried to make the most of the time that we had left, but mum got worse quickly, especially after she started the chemo. It's why I tried to make sure that my dad was ok, as her illness felt like I came out of nowhere. She always had a little cough, but she constantly told us that she was ok and that it was nothing to worry about, so when we found out that it was stage 4 cancer" James choked on his words slightly, causing Kendall to begin rubbing soothing circles on his chest.

"You don't have to say anything else. I'm so sorry James" Kendall said, causing James to sniffle slightly as he wiped his eyes.

"It's just difficult to look back on you know. She was always so lively and full of energy, so to see her like that was really tough" James finished, sniffling once again. "I'm sorry, I just made this really depressing" James stated, causing Kendall to shake his head, still rubbing soothing circles.

"You didn't, and even if you did, it wouldn't matter. It's part of your life James, so it's important to me" Kendall replied, causing James to lean down and place another kiss onto his lips.

"I love you," James said, causing a warmth to grow in Kendall's chest.

"I love you too" the blond replied, settling onto James' chest once again.

* * *

It was safe to say that James was shocked when the next day, he'd gotten a message from his father asking him to come to the Diamond Apartment. The last time James had spoken to his dad, he'd been assigned a private security guard and then shouted at him, so James was curious to see how this was going to go. As James approached the apartment block, he couldn't help but let out a sigh. His childhood penthouse suite held so many memories, both good and bad, and after last night, James wasn't so sure that he was ready to try and face them.

James had loved his mum to pieces, so the news of her illness hit him really hard, as did her death. After that, his relationship with his father was never quite the same, especially considering his dad came cold and distant from him. James had always put it down to the fact that his father was grieving as much, if not more than he was, but this attitude had lasted for years by this point, so James eventually put it down to the fact that that was just how his father was, a cold, judgemental man.

Before James even realised, the elevator door dinged and opened in front of him, revealing his childhood home. As he walked in, he was greeted with the sight of Bitters, the housekeeper.

"Bitters, Nice to see you," James said as he walked in, causing the housekeeper to let out a small huff. James and Bitters had always had a bit of a strained relationship, especially when James was in his rebellious teenage phase and it seemed Bitters never forgave him for it.

"Your father is in his office" was all Bitters replied with, causing James to nod as he made his way towards the large wooden doors that led into his father's office. James always gained a small shudder down his smile as he walked towards them, remembering these doors as a looming presence in the household.

Even when he was younger, his mum always told him that he was never allowed to enter his father's office without permission, and the few times he did, he always remembered being reprimanded for it, something that stuck with him to this day.

Knocking on the doors, James heard a weak 'come in' causing him to push one of the doors open, revealing his dad sat at his desk, still working on some documents. His father looked as weak as ever, even weaker than after the Inferno attack, but as far as James knew, his father only had a cold, so he knew he couldn't mention it. Instead, James took a seat at his desk, opposite his dad.

"You wanted to see me?" James asked, causing his father to nod, not looking up from his documents as he did so.

It was about thirty seconds later after his dad had finished writing something up that he finally filed the documents away and turned to James.

"I didn't realise you were an idiot James" Henry began, causing James' eyes to widen in shock at the tone of his father's voice.

"I'm not quite sure what you mean by that" James replied, finally finding his voice.

"Quitting Dispatch Weekly was moronic, and I can't believe you'd do something like that. You were on track to be running the place, and despite the fact that I never approved of the job in the first place, that would still be better than what you currently are, which is unemployed" Henry continued, causing James to just roll his eyes.

"For a start, Griffin was a dick and really, I'm surprised I lasted as long as I did there. Secondly, it's wasn't a moronic decision as I say once again, Griffin was a dick. There was no point continuing to work for him when I wasn't doing what I loved, and thirdly, there's nothing wrong with being unemployed. Besides, I have a plan in place for what I'm doing to do next. A fellow colleague and I are going to start our own blog" James stated, causing Henry to let out a snort of derision.

"Really James, that's your plan?" Henry said, shaking his head as he did so. "You need to start living in the real world, where things don't come to you on a silver plate"

Now it was James' turn to let out a snort.

"I need to start living in the real world? I was the one who went out there and got my own job at Dispatch Weekly when all you wanted me to do was take over Diamond Inc. If I'd have taken your advice, I never would have found what I loved doing and I stuck writing up business reports and other stuff I didn't want to do"

"But at least you'd still have a job" Henry replied, causing James to just roll his eyes. "You're never going to get into a position of power if you continue to live the way you do. It's time you step up James, and finally, do something worthwhile with your life. And I say again, while I don't approve of this 'journalism career', at least there was a chance for you to be something. Now that you've quit it, I'm not holding out much hope"

"Have you ever thought that maybe I don't care about being 'in a position of greatness?'" James asked, rolling his eyes as he said it. "Unlike you, I don't want to be working 24/7 and I actually want to go out and do stuff, not be stuck in an office all day" James continued, as he pushed himself up from his chair.

"Where are you going? I haven't dismissed you" Henry said as James stood up, causing James to shake his head.

"I don't care whether you've dismissed me or not and I'm sick of you speaking to me this way. I'm not just some random person, I'm your son but you don't seem to even care about me. My apartment was attacked, my boyfriend was thrown out of a window and I nearly died but did you even care? No! This is the first time I've spoken to you since the whole 'Ricardo' situation and the only reason you called me here was so that you could berate me for making my own decisions. I'm sick of it" James continued, pushing the chair out of his way before he began to make his way towards the office door.

"James, wait!" He heard his father say before Henry broke down into an extreme coughing fit. Panic crossed James' face as he heard it, and he quickly turned around to go and help his father.

As he got close, however, his father just pushed him away as someone from outside the room rushed in to help him. "And I don't care what Doctor Burrens said, this isn't a cold" James continued, causing Henry to glare at him

"Oh for god sake James, don't bring this up again!" Henry snapped when he finally caught his breath. "I been telling you for ages that I'm fine, and that this incessant badgering isn't helpful" Henry continued, causing James to just roll his eyes. The concern he had for his father immediately vanish. "And this conversation isn't over James. I won't have my son speak to me the way you just did. You don't know half of the things that I've done for you"

"And you don't know half of the things about me either. Maybe when you learn those, then you can actually talk to me" James snapped back, before making his way out of his father's office.

He didn't even bother to say goodbye to Bitters as he strode up to the elevator and pushed the button. Thankfully, the lift was waiting for him, so he was able to step into it and basically slam the button for the ground floor.

As soon as the doors closed, James let out a massive sigh, leaning against the back of the lift as he rubbed his forehead. While he didn't feel guilty about what he'd said to his father, he still couldn't believe that he'd done it in the first place. Another sigh escaped James' mouth, the brunet realising how sick of his father's berating he actually was.

His father didn't understand what Griffin was like as a boss, and worse than that, his father didn't even understand what James was like. James didn't care about fame or fortune, he just wanted to do something that made him happy and journalism was that. Well, and Kendall, but James didn't want to think about that right now. If he wanted to start his own blog, and it made him happy, then fuck what his father said.

Still, as the lift doors opened on the bottom floor, James couldn't help but think back to the state that his father was in. Much like James had said upstairs, he didn't care what Doctor Burrens said, that certainly wasn't just a chest cold. If it were, then surely it would have gotten better by now. His father was definitely getting worse and despite everything that was said, James did still care for his dad and certainly didn't want him to die.

A thought crossed James' mind as he walked out of the building, one that he never thought he'd have. Thinking back to when his father showed him the diagnosis, James remembered that he hardly got to look at the piece of paper. His father was quick to reach over and grab it from him before James had a proper chance to review it.

Knowing where he needed to go, James hailed for a taxi on the side of the road, googling something as he did so. When a taxi finally stopped, James was quick to hop in and ask to go to a place he hadn't been for years.

* * *

 **So there we have it! We learnt a little bit about James' mum, but mostly this chapter was James' dad just being a dick as per usual! James did, however, manage to say what he needed to say, and now James is suspicious about his father's illness, which we all know isn't just a chest cold!**

 **I want to say a massive thank you to Winterschild11, Guest, RainbowDiamonds and Epically Obsessed for reviewing the last chapter and I'm so glad you liked it! You all seemed to like the fact that Kendall felt good about helping out and you also seemed to enjoy the Kames in the last few chapters! I felt like it was finally about time they spent some proper time together!**

 **Anyway, I hope you're all having a great week and that you have a great week, and I will see you all next Monday for the next chapter of this! I'm back at home now for my Christmas break, so hopefully, I should be able to take some time and get these written, so I'll see you then! But until then,**

 **TTFN 😀❄**


	35. Chapter 35

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! I'm super excited to get this chapter to you, but I also feel like I should warn you! This is the beginning of the end! With this now being officially the longest story I have ever written, I feel like it's about time I started to wrap it up! Anyway, I will ramble more in the authors note at the end, so let's crack on shall we?**

* * *

James sighed as he looked up at yet another Diamond Inc building that stood tall in the cityscape. This building was smaller than the Diamond Inc HQ building that Inferno had destroyed, but it wasn't any less impressive. Then again, James expected nothing less from a building that was filled with Diamond Inc's tech geniuses and storage servers.

Walking through the front doors, James was immediately subjected to a retina scan, which meant he had to try not to roll his eyes at the process. This system had always been in place but was rarely used. Now, however, after the Diamond Inc HQ attack, it seemed that security was everyone's highest priority and while he couldn't blame them, he certainly wouldn't mind if the security guard giving him daggers backed off a little bit.

Thankfully, it wasn't long before the retina scan finished, allowing him into the building and as he walked up to the escalator, he couldn't help but think of the last time he was here. It must have been years since he last stepped foot in here, and the memories that surfaced of when he did caused him to cringe slightly. It was after his 'off the rails' phase at 17, when his mother had died, and he remembered being sat in the PR managers office, trying to control all of the damage that he'd caused to the company.

During his time, the media were all over him, taking photos of him drinking and taking drugs, and of course, that reflected badly on the company. When he'd sorted himself out, however, the first thing his father made him do was atone for all of the bad press he'd gotten and that started with James helping to do damage control on everything that had been published.

Pulling himself from his thoughts as he arrived at the top of the escalator, James made his way through the open hallways of the building, looking for the one person he knew would help him. Apparently, her workspace had moved a lot over the years, but eventually, James was able to track her down, her red and black-streaked hair giving her away.

As James approached, he noticed that she had her headphones in, completely oblivious to his approach, and while for a brief second, James had the thought to scare her, he knew that he could never enlist her help if he did. Instead, James knocked twice on her office door, causing her to jump softly as she looked up at the door, a smile growing on her face as he did so.

This wasn't a good smile however; it was one of those smiles where James knew he wasn't going to win out of this conversation.

"Mr James Diamond, what an unexpected pleasure," she said as she gestured James to come in, causing James to flash her a small smile.

"Lucy" James said as he closed the door behind him before sitting down in the chair opposite her.

Lucy and he had been frenemies, for lack of a better word, for years, since secondary school. Lucy was known for her computer skills, and it was half of the reason that James had gotten her hired at Diamond Inc.

The other half of that reason was that Lucy had hacked into James' phone one day and discovered a lot of incriminating things about him. After a brief stint of blackmail, Lucy had done what she'd promised and deleted all of the information about him, but it was an unspoken rule between them that James would only go to her if he was desperate.

And in this case, he certainly was.

"So, what do you need this time?" Lucy asked, getting straight to the point, something that James appreciated. He knew that the repartee between them could go on for hours if they'd gotten started, so he was thankful that they didn't.

"I need you to back into someone's personal server," James stated, causing Lucy's eyes to widen briefly, while a sly smile grew on her face.

"You know, that's highly illegal." She replied, closing her laptop lid down slightly so that she could focus more on her attention on James. He felt himself shrinking under her gaze, despite the fact that he had nothing to be intimidated about. She was always able to do this to him, however, and it was once of the reasons that he'd never visit her unless he needed to.

"I know, that's why I came to you. I know you'll cover your tracks" James replied, causing that smirk on Lucy's face to grow slightly.

"I wasn't worried about getting caught. I was worried about what you're going to offer as payment. Something like this is going to cost you dearly." Lucy replied, causing James to roll his eyes at her bluntness. Once again though, he was appreciative of it as he always knew where he stood with her.

"What do you want?" James replied, causing Lucy to let out a little chuckle.

"Now, that really depends on who we're hacking and what we find," Lucy said, pushing her laptop lid up once again as if to tell James she's ready.

"I need you to hack into Doctor Helen Burrens medical files and see what you can find on my dad" James replied, causing Lucy's features to soften slightly behind the laptop. She was certain, however, that James couldn't see this.

"Can I ask why?" Lucy said, causing James to raise an eyebrow at her.

"What about the 'no questions asked' policy" he retorted, causing Lucy to just shrug as she began typing away.

As she did so, James was there, patiently awaiting the news of what she'd found. Of course, however, his heart was beating a hundred miles a minute, hoping that what she'd find would be the same as what James was shown in his father's office ages ago. A small part of his brain, however, knew that that wasn't going to be the case.

"I'm in" Lucy announced, pulling James from his thoughts. "But I've found two files under 'diagnosis.' Both made on the same day" Lucy continued, causing James to jump up from his chair and circle the desk, hovering over her shoulder as they stared at the two files.

"What does the first one say?" James asked, causing Lucy to double click on it, loading the PDF file waiting for them. The first one James instantly recognised as the paperwork that his father had shown him. As James began to scan through the document, he heard Lucy speak up.

"Wait what? You're dad's only 50?" she asked, causing James to just nod as he continued to read. All of the information on it was the same and at the bottom of the page, in the diagnosis box sat the words 'Chest Cold.'

Still, that only caused James' heart rate to increase.

"What does the second one say?" James asked, his heart in his throat as Lucy loaded up the document. Once again, the sheet looked identical to the one he'd previously looked at but at the bottom of the page sat a different diagnosis. One of three words, instead of two. "Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis" James read out loud as he stared at the words, trying to figure out what they were. "What's that?" he asked, causing Lucy to shrug next to him.

"I don't know, but with a name like that, it can't be good" Lucy replied, causing James to glance down at her briefly. She didn't make eye contact with him, instead staring at her computer screen and when James looked back at it, the three words had been typed into a search engine. Instantly, millions of results presented themselves on the screen, causing Lucy to click on the first reputable one.

As soon as the page loaded, both of them read through it, discovering all sorts of things that James knew he didn't want to know and see. The one that seemed to hit him the most, however, was the phrase 'as of current, there is no cure' causing James to swallow a lump in his throat.

"How much do I owe you?" James asked, knowing that he'd seen enough. When he glanced down at Lucy this time, there was no hiding the sympathy in her eyes.

"I…um, nothing. You owe me nothing" Lucy replied, casting her eyes down to the ground slightly, obviously reading the same part that James had.

With that, James found himself heading back towards her office door, but when he heard his name, he turned back to Lucy.

"Are you going to be ok? I mean, I know we're not exactly friends, but don't you want to talk about it?" Lucy said, causing a smile, sad smile to grow on James' face. That was the best he could do to hide how he was truly feeling.

"I'll be fine," James replied, before walking out of her office and back towards the front of the building. His heart felt like it was exploding in his chest, but he knew that he needed to keep it together.

He also knew where he needed to go next and once he was back out on the street, he didn't hesitate to call a taxi and begin the next part of his journey.

* * *

As James arrived at his next destination, his mood had shifted from one of sadness to one of anger. Questions were raging through his mind as to why his dad had lied to him about his illness, and why Doctor Burrens had created a fake diagnosis for his father. James was hoping to answer that second question now.

Stepping out of the taxi, James stared up at Doctor Burren's practice before taking a step towards it. As he did so, he put on a straight face, continuing to hide his emotions behind a mask. Opening the door to the practice, he stepped up to the reception desk.

"I need to speak with Dr Burrens," James said to the receptionist, who didn't even give James a cursory glance as he answered.

"Sorry Sir, but Doctor Burrens isn't seeing anyone this week" the receptionist stated, causing James to try and contain his anger further.

"But this is urgent" James stated, the receptionist not even looking at James again as he responded.

"Sorry Sir, but I've been given specific instructions not to let anyone up there all week" The receptionist stated, causing James to shift to a new tactic as he rolled his eyes and let out an audible huff.

"Oh, well my father told me that she was expecting me. Maybe I should phone him and find out" James replied, pulling his phone from his pocket. He had no desire to even talk to his father, but the journalist in him knew that he needed to do what he could to get the answers he wanted, and this was the best course of action in this occasion.

As expected, that statement granted him a small glance from the receptionist and as soon as the man's eyes landed on James, they widened.

"Mr Diamond, I had no idea that you were coming. You mentioned it was for your father?" The receptionist said, causing James to nod, pulling the non-ringing phone slightly away from his ear as if to keep up the charade.

"That's right. As you probably know, he's not well at all and I was told that Doctor Burrens had something for him" James continued, before putting the phone back to his ear, trying not to enjoy the panic on the receptionist's face.

"Well, I don't know anything about this" The receptionist began, causing James to roll his eyes as he subtly gestured the phone again in a threatening manner. "But if you said that Doctor Burrens is expecting you, then she must be expecting you. I'll send you up right away!" The receptionist said, causing James to flash him a passive-aggressive smile as he finally pulled the phone away from his ear as he pretended to cancel the call.

Sometimes he did love the power his name held, but most of the time, he hated it.

Ignoring that train of thought, James followed the receptionist as he walked around the desk and led James over to the elevator. The brunet watched as the receptionist used the card on his lanyard to activate the lift before they began their journey up to Doctor Burren's office.

The journalist in him was dying to know why all of Doctor Burren's appointments had been cancelled, considering she was the best consultant in Spirit City, and eventually, James had to break the silence.

"I am curious. Why have all of her appointments been cancelled?" James asked, causing the receptionist to shrug next to him.

"I'm unsure Sir. All I was told when I came in a week ago was that all her appointments had been cancelled apart from the one with your father last Wednesday. Since then, no one has come in or out apart from your father again on Friday" The receptionist answered, causing James' thought pattern to kick off again, trying to figure out what the hell was his father doing here on Friday.

 _'That was the day that Inferno attacked your apartment. Maybe that's why he didn't check up on you'_ His brain supplied, but James just shook his head. That attack took place late in the night, so surely his father wouldn't have been here so late. Thankfully, before James had the chance to recede further into his thoughts, the lift door opened.

"Doctor Burrens office is down the hall, first door on the left," The receptionist said, causing James to nod as he walked out into another waiting room.

"Thank you," James said before he took off towards his destination. He faintly heard the lift door closing behind him as he walked through the empty waiting room, an eery feeling descending over him as he did. There was something ominous about a place like this being empty causing James to pick up the pace a little bit

. Finding where he needed to be, James knocked twice on the door before waiting for a response.

Nothing.

The brunet knocked again, this time a louder hoping that she'd hear him this time, but once again, nothing. Knocking for a third and final time, James opened the door and as his eyes lifted from the ground and into the room, he couldn't help but gasp at what he said, the brunet bringing his hands up to cover his mouth.

Blood was covering the room, with it being sprayed on the walls, staining the carpets and covering everything that sat in between. As well as that, everything in the office was destroyed, like a wild animal had rampaged through it.

Her bookcase was in pieces on the floor, with all of the books being torn to shreds, her sofa was ripped apart and, probably the most horrific was the fact that Doctor Burren's chest had massive scratch marks down it as if a lion had clawed her to pieces, her dead corpse sprawled in her desk chair.

James panicked, taking a few steps back and the brunet jumped as his back hit the wall. Regaining some brainpower, James managed to reach into his pocket and pull out his phone, immediately ringing Carlos as he completely bypassed the rest of the SCPD.

* * *

"And no one else has been up to her office?" Chief Garcia asked the receptionist causing the man to shake his head. Thankfully, he hadn't seen the body as James was sure that he wouldn't have been able to cope. Just hearing about it was enough to make the man go pale.

"No, no one else apart from Mr Henry Diamond last Wednesday and Friday and then Mr James Diamond today. You can check the elevator log if you need too" the receptionist replied, causing Carlos to nod as he scribbled it down in his notepad. "Well, the coroner confirmed that Doctor Burrens has been dead since late Sunday night and if what you say is true, then no one else has been into the building."

"So, what does that mean?" James asked Carlos causing him to shrug slightly.

"It means that we currently don't have any suspects. There are no signs of forced entry on the doors or the windows, so that would point to it being the receptionist" Carlos paused slightly when they both saw the receptionist's eyes widen massively in shock. "But if what you've said is true and the elevator logs show that you've only used it when you said you did, then you'll be ruled out as well. From there, we'll have to give the crime scene a proper search to see if we can find any evidence to point to who or what did this" Carlos continued, causing James to nod, the brunet bring his arms up across his chest, suddenly feeling a slight chill go up his spine.

Thankfully, that felt alleviated when he felt a strong arm wrap itself around his waist.

"Ah Mr Knight, I'm glad you could make it…for James' sake that is," Carlos said, causing Kendall to nod, already catching onto what Carlos was saying. Nodding his head to the side briefly, Kendall and James followed Carlos to the side slightly, but the police chief paused when he saw James had still joined them. "Mr Diamond, I need to speak to Mr Knight alone."

"It's alright, Chief. He knows as well" Kendall quickly added, causing Carlos to nod as he took a deep breath. "Something about this isn't sitting right with me. No ordinary human could have done this, so I'm worried that we've got ourselves a new supervillain" Carlos stated, causing Kendall and James to nod ever so slightly.

"The real question is, why would they have targeted Doctor Burrens?" Kendall asked, causing Carlos to turn his attention to James.

"If you don't mind me asking, what were you doing here?" the police chief asked, causing James to let out a little sigh.

"I was trying to get some information on my father. Turns out that ages ago he showed me a fake diagnosis and he actually has something called Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis. I wasn't quite sure what it was so I was coming to see Doctor Burren, one so she could tell me and two, so I could ask her why she created a fake prescription" James answered, causing Carlos to nod, while he felt Kendall's grip on him increase slightly which provided him with massive comfort.

"I have to admit, that's a little curious considering your dad was the last person that went in to see her. Maybe that's a lead worth following up. Maybe he knows something" Carlos explained, causing James to let out a soft sigh.

"I was going to go and confront him after I'd seen Doctor Burrens anyway, so I can do that. I need to get some answers of my own from him"

"Alright, well keep me up to date. I'm going to comb the office for any pieces of evidence. As of the moment, I advise that both of you remain vigilant. We don't know when they could strike again, but I want to be ready for when they do" Carlos finished, causing them both to nod.

As soon as he walked away, Kendall turned his attention straight to James. "Are you ok? I can't imagine that must have been easy to see, and then the news of your father on top of that"

"I'm fine," James responded, providing Kendall with a little smile. "I have to admit, I'm still a little shaken up after seeing that, but really, I just want answers. I just want to know why my dad lied to me" James stated, causing Kendall to take James' hands into his own.

"Do you want me to come with you?" he asked, causing James to shake his head.

"No, I'll be fine, I think this is something I need to do alone." James started, before giving Kendall another little smile. "Besides, I think it's best for the city is Blizzard remains alert" James finished, causing Kendall to nod, placing a kiss onto James' cheek.

"Alright, well I'm here if you need me, just remember that," Kendall said, causing James to flash him a genuine smile, now placing a chaste kiss onto Kendall's lips.

"I'll let you know if I find anything out. I love you"

"I Love you too" Kendall replied, finally releasing James' hands from his own before walking the brunet walk into the distance.

Much like Carlos had said, something about this doesn't sit right, but for the life of him, Kendall couldn't figure out what.

* * *

 **So there we have it! James has discovered that his father lied to him about his illness, with the help of Lucy, and then we have the shocking discovery that Doctor Burrens is dead! The question is now, who or what could have done this! Like I said at the beginning, this is the beginning of the end, but I'm not quite sure how many chapters that will mean as I haven't written them. To be honest, it could be anywhere from about 3 to about 6, so we'll just have to wait and see!**

 **I'd like to say a massive thank you to Guest, Winterschild11, EpicallyObsessed and RainbowDiamonds for reviewing the last chapter and I'm so glad that you all liked it! You all seemed to like learning about James' mum, which I was glad about, as I felt like it was time for that, and you were also grateful that James stood up to his father! It's a shame that that didn't last long however, with him having to go back and see him again!**

 **Another quick life update, but as for the USA trip, I'm glad you're as excited as I am! A quick rundown of my plan is that I start in Seattle, and have a 10-day field trip with my Uni, where we go all throughout Washington and Oregon, stopping at Mount St Helens, Richland and Baker City to name a few places! Then, when the trip is over, a friend and I are exploring by ourselves, starting with San Francisco, then heading down to LA, across to New Orleans, and then up to Chicago before finishing the trip with her in New York. So yeah, it's a pretty jam-packed trip and I'm probably going to be out there for a month, if not a little longer! As you can probably tell, I'm super psyched about this!**

 **Anyway, I hope you've had a good week and that you have a good week, and I will see you next Monday for the next chapter of this! But until then,**

 **TTFN 😀❄**


	36. Chapter 36

**Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and all that jazz! Hi Guys and welcome back to the next chapter of Blizzard! A bit of a shorter chapter today but I hope you all enjoy it anyway! So, let's crack on, shall we?**

* * *

As James left Kendall, he knew that his first priority was to head back to his childhood penthouse, so he wasted no time in doing so. The image of Doctor Burrens was still plaguing his mind, but as bad as it sounded, James had kind of become numb to it now. With everything that was going on in Spirit City, not to mention personally being attacked by a supervillain and having to heal his wounded boyfriend, James had slowly gotten used to scenes of violence and death.

 _'What has the world come to?'_ James thought to himself as he walked, considering the thought that he'd just had. This certainly wasn't the way he thought his life would go but then again, life is full of twists and surprised, both of which he'd encountered many off. It seemed that Doctor Burrens office wasn't very far from his father's penthouse, so James quickly found himself walking back down the block that only hours before he'd not wanted to return to. Now, however, he found himself wanting to return more than ever, with questions burning themselves into his brain so that he wouldn't forget to ask them. The lift ride up to the penthouse was once again a solitary one, but it gave James time to brace himself and the inevitable onslaught that was going to ensue. He knew for sure that his father was going to have a few choice words for him, but James knew that he wasn't to listen to them, instead bringing up his own questions.

At the end of the day, James was here for one reason, and one reason alone, to get answers to his questions, and maybe the best way to do that was to act like the journalist he'd trained to be. To completely detach himself from the entire situation and try to stay as logical as possible. Like that wasn't fucking difficult at all. As soon as the lift doors opened, James was filled with memories of his childhood for the second time that day but unlike usual, he wasn't greeted with the sight of Bitters staring back him. Taking a step into the hallway of the apartment, James glanced around trying to find somebody except there seemed to be no signs of life anywhere.

"Father? Bitters?" James found himself calling out, finding it bizarre that no one was around, but as expected, James heard nothing following his callout. The journalist in him took over briefly, with James' brain supplying that this would be the perfect time for him to get some answers and while he hated the thought, he couldn't help but agree with it. Remaining as quiet as possible just in case someone was in the apartment with him, although it wouldn't matter now as they'd know he was there, James found himself making his way to his father's office before pushing the door handle down and opening it.

The room was empty, and while James had expected that, it was such an unfamiliar sight to him but he quickly shook the feeling off as he closed the door behind him and crossed the room to the desk. Part of his brain was pointing out all the red flags with what he was about to do, and yet another was telling him what a brilliant idea it was.

James had no clue as to why his father was hiding stuff from him, and what better place would there be to hide them that the computer?

Clicking the mouse a couple of times, James watched as the wallpaper loaded up, causing him to press again which revealed a small password box. James didn't even need to think about his father's password, knowing that it was his mother's name, Brooke.

With the six letters inputted, the computer unlocked itself allowing James to dive into his father's treasure trove of secrets. Except, as James loaded up his father's files, he found nothing out of the ordinary with it just showing files filled with expense reports, board room meeting transcripts and the like. Still, James had a gut feeling that there must be something on the machine that at least gave him a clue as to why his father had lied to him.

James scrolled further, now entering the company's one drive which was filled with project titles. There was everything from the social science experiments to a folder dedicated to the glacier's project Kendall was working on, and all of them contained nothing to explain why his father had lied to him. That was until James scrolled right to the bottom of the file explorer, revealing a file called 'Metasis.'

Something about this folder stood out to James, and yet he couldn't understand why. The rest of the files were all under one word as well, but something about this didn't sit right with him. Double-clicking on the file, a pop-up immediately flashed up on the screen, causing James to input his mum's name once again, but this time, however, the pop-up just flashed at him again.

James tried his mum's name again, changing it slightly this time, but once more, he was denied access to it. That's when James heard the scuffling from outside the door, and while James couldn't just abandon this file, he also knew that he couldn't be on his dad's computer in case anyone walked in.

Thinking fast, James pulled his keys from his pocket and plugged the attached memory stick right into the computer. It took a few cursed seconds to load, but finally, James was able to drag the file across onto the memory stick just as the door handle began to be pushed down. Joy spread across James' face, thinking he'd gotten the file on to see that he'd have to wait two minutes.

 _'So be it. I have than two minutes worth of things to talk about with my father'_ James thought to himself as he stood defensively at the edge of the desk as the door opened, revealing his father.

"I'm shocked to see you here. After your little tantrum this morning, I was certain you weren't going to return. What are you doing here anyway?" Henry said from the get-go, instantly putting James into a sour mood.

Well, more of a sour mood then he was already in.

"I wasn't going to return, but that all changed when I found out that you'd lied to me" James responded, causing Henry to just roll his eyes.

"And what have I lied about this time?" Henry asked, causing James to grit his teeth slightly as he tried not to let anger consume him completely.

"Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis" James stated, causing Henry to freeze in his spot, his face paling. "Does that ring a bell to you? Because it's what Doctor Burrens actually diagnosed you with when she examined you. Not just a chest cold father, but Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis! The three fucking words that won't stop going around my head!"

"How did you find you about that?" Henry demanded, his eyes piercing into James' causing the brunet to let out a humourless chuckle at his father's question.

"Really? That's all you're going to say? You're not going to explain why you fucking lied to me?"

"Don't you dare speak to me like that!" Henry snapped back at James, now sitting in one of his seats in front of the desk, completely opposite to where he'd normally be. "And I don't need to explain why I didn't tell you, as you're proving why right now. You've become hysterical and emotional" Henry replied, causing James to once again let out a humourless laugh.

Glancing down at the computer, James saw that the copying had about a minute to go, but James knew that he was nowhere near done.

"I'm getting hysterical and emotional? Well, that's probably because my father has been lying to me about having a fatal, incurable illness! After what happened with mum, I thought" was as far as James got before Henry cut him off.

"See, this is exactly why I didn't tell you! You're so melodramatic about everything James and I knew if I told you, you'd do nothing but make a fuss which would only make my situation worse. I don't need your pity James and I certainly don't need you to worry about me. I'm fully capable of looking after myself and I have the situation handled" Henry states, causing James to raise his eyebrow at him.

"What does that mean, you have the situation handled?" James asked, causing Henry to just roll his eyes.

"It means I have the situation handled James, now I think it's best if you leave before you get yourself more agitated" Henry replied, causing James' eyes to widen.

Noticing that the copying was done, James discreetly pulled the memory stick from the computer before heading towards the office door and opened it. Before the left the room, however, James turned back to his father.

"I know you may think that I'm hysterical and that I'm going to pity you, but the truth of the whole situation is that I only care for your health because I love you. But, if I've come to realise anything over these past couple of months, it's that you don't actually love me back and that all this time and effort that I've been wasting trying to make sure that you're ok has been for nothing. On the night that Inferno attacked my apartment, he said to me that I was the thing you loved second after your company, but I'm beginning to think that that's not even true and that I actuality, I wouldn't even make the list" James said, his voice dejected as he finally shut the door behind him and headed to the lift door.

What James didn't realise was that throughout that whole speech, Henry's face was filled with mortification and as James closed the door behind him, he wouldn't hear his father mutter the words "I'm only doing what's best for you in the long run."

* * *

Tears streaked down James' face as he rode the elevator back to the bottom floor of the building but as he approached it, James knew that he needed to put on a strong face. Wiping the tears from his eyes and making sure they weren't red, James left the building in the same state he entered it, calm on the exterior while raging on the interior.

Still, as he walked down the street, he knew that he needed to speak to someone about what had just happened, and what better person than his boyfriend. Pulling his phone out of his pocket, James pressed on Kendall's contact and within two rings, the blond had answered.

"Hey, how are you holding up?" Kendall asked right away, causing a small warmth to spread through James' chest as a small sad smile began to grow on his face.

"Not so good. Are you free to meet up? I know you're working and everything but…"

"Sure" Kendall interrupted, knowing that James was going to being his justification rambling. "There' a coffee shop on campus, if you wanna talk there?" Kendall asked, causing James to nod, blowing out a breath of relief.

"Yeah, I'll head there right away. See you in a minute, love you."

"Love you too" Kendall replied before ending the call, leaving James in a better state than before.

Still, this now presented a whole bunch of troubles with James having to try and explain why he stole files from his father. Whatever the case, he'd deal with that in a minute.

For the moment, James set himself a brisk pace, knowing that he needed to be in his boyfriend's arms.

* * *

As soon as James caught sight of Kendall stood outside the coffee shop, his quick pace increased until he was wrapping his arms around his boyfriend. Kendall was shocked at first but quickly returned the gesture, asking James if he was ok, causing the brunet to simply shake his head.

After that, Kendall was quick to usher them inside and after getting their drinks and finding a secluded table, James finally told Kendall everything that had happened. The brunet couldn't help the tears that had gathered in his eyes as he spoke and when he finally finished telling Kendall about what his dad had said, he found himself chugging his coffee, giving Kendall chance to speak.

"Wow, that sounds horrible James. I can't believe that he said those things to you, that's so cruel" Kendall said, causing James to nod as he put his coffee back down.

"But that's not the whole story," James said, wiping the tears from his eyes. "I also kind of, maybe, stole some data from his computer" James stated, causing Kendall's eyes to widen as he leant forward slightly.

"You did what?" Kendall whispered, causing James to blush ever so slightly as he pulled his keys out of his pocket as if to reinforce the point.

"Well, my dad wasn't in his office when I first arrived and the journalist in me took over. He didn't tell me about the illness in the first place, so I knew he wasn't going to tell me about it now. Anyway, so I went searching through his computer and I saw this file that stood out to me"

"So, you stole it from his computer?" Kendall interrupted, causing James to nod sheepishly as he took another sip from his drink.

"I know it sounds bad, but I need to know what this is Kendall. There was just something about it that was really suspicious to me and to make that worse, its password locked so I can't get into it. I need someone I can trust to get into it"

That last statement from James ruled Lucy out completed as while she did so a little bit of compassion, James knew that he couldn't trust her completely.

"Do you know anyone Kendall? Someone who you trust that could help me with this?" James asked, causing Kendall to let out a soft sigh. There was someone he could think of, but before he suggested them, he needed to know that James was sure he wanted to do this.

"Before I answer that, are you sure you want to know what's in that file. It could be nothing James but it could also be something that changes everything." Kendall said, causing James to nod opposite him.

"I'm sure. I'm telling you, Kendall, I don't know what it is, but something about this file just isn't sitting right with me" James replied, causing Kendall to let out a soft sigh. He knew more than anyone to trust those feelings.

"Alright then. Finish your coffee, and we'll go need them" Kendall stated, causing James to flash him a soft smile. In Kendall's mind, it helped settle his unease about this whole situation.

* * *

"I don't know about this Kendall" Logan said as the blond finished explaining the situation to him.

"Come on Doc, you were able to enhance the security footage, surely you can do this" Kendall replied, causing Logan to shake his head.

"It's not a matter of whether I can do it, it's a matter of whether I should. I mean, this could be really sensitive information and it's probably locked for a reason" Logan replied, causing James to let out a soft sigh as stepped forward.

"Please Doctor Mitchell, I need your help on his. Someone about this file isn't sitting right with me, and I need to know what it is. You don't have to look at anything if you don't want to, but please unlock it for me" James said, giving Logan his best puppy dog look to try and make Logan cave. It took about thirty seconds before Logan let out a sigh.

"Alright, give it here and I'll have a go" Logan stated, causing James to smile at him as he passed over the memory stick.

"Thank you, Doctor Mitchell, you're a lifesaver" James replied, watching as Logan plugged in the memory stick into his laptop.

* * *

 **So there we have it! James has stolen a file from his dad's computer, one that he's got a bad feeling about! The real question is, will this contain the answers that James is looking for?**

 **I want to say a massive thank you to Winterschild11, Guest, RainbowDiamonds and EpicallyObsessed for reviewing the last chapter and I'm so glad you liked it! You're all suspicious of James' dad, so you'll have to wait and see whether you're right about that! Also, I can imagine that this chapter has only made you more suspicious of him! You also seemed to like the appearance of Lucy, which I'm glad about as I thought she'd be a fun character to briefly see!**

 **Anyway, I hope that you all have such a fantastic week and I will probably see you next Monday for the next chapter of this! So, until then,**

 **TTFN 😀❄🎄🎄**


	37. Chapter 37

**Hi Guys and welcome to the long-overdue chapter of Blizzard! So, a quick reminder of what's going on, Doctor Burrens has been murdered, James stole a file from his father called 'Metasis' and is getting Logan to try and decrypt it! That's pretty much all you need to know for this chapter, so let's crack on with it shall we?**

* * *

James stood anxiously by, watching as Logan began to tap away on his laptop. Thankfully, Kendall was right by his side and James had never been more thankful that Kendall's hands were cold than now, because they were helping keep his body temperature down. When the typing came to a gradual stop and Logan let out a sigh, James couldn't help but squeeze Kendall's hand, causing the blond to ask the question.

"What's up Doc?" The blond asked, causing Logan to turn towards the two of them, revealing the computer screen. On it was a small progress bar and the two of them didn't need to get any closer to see how slowly it was progressing.

"The encryption of this comparable to military grade. At this rate, it's going to take the laptop hours to decrypt it, and that's hoping the encryption doesn't change or adapt" Logan explained, causing James to let out a sigh.

"I guess we've don't have much choice but to wait. Thank you Doctor Mitchell" James spoke up, causing Kendall to raise his eyebrow slightly.

"Wait a second, what about the supercomputer," Kendall asked, causing Logan to tilt his head slightly.

"You're not going to suggest what I think you're suggesting are you?" Logan replied, causing Kendall to shrug as he glanced at James briefly, the brunet immediately catching on to what Kendall was saying.

"Why not use it? That thing would be able to do it a lot faster than your laptop can" Kendall explained, Logan shaking his head as the blond spoke.

"I don't even know where to start with that being a horrific idea. Firstly, it's university owned and that would most certainly be a breach of their policies. Secondly, you don't have a good history with those types of computers, and this is information that we don't want to be released into the world." Logan stated, causing Kendall to tut slightly.

"You can't speak to me about breaching university policy, you used it to enhance video footage" Kendall quipped, causing Logan to go silent.

"Please Doctor, I really need this information. Plus, with you here, we can make sure the data is properly deleted so no one can access it" James stated, causing Logan to let out a soft sigh as he began to debate the topic mentally. James couldn't only squeeze Kendall's hand harder as Logan did this, and after what felt like hours, Logan pushed himself up from his seat.

"Fine, I'll do it but only because I know if I say no, Kendall's gonna do it anyway" Logan stated, causing Kendall to grin slightly.

"You know me so well" Kendall stated, causing James to swat him on the arm.

"Thank you, Doctor! I promise that no one will know you were involved in this" James stated, causing Logan to nod, if not briefly. As Logan made his way out of the room, memory stick in hand, Kendall and James began to follow him, the two of them having a brief conversation as they walked.

"So, what do you think is on it?" Kendall asked, causing James to shrug as he let out a sigh.

"I honestly don't know. I don't even know what Metasis is, so I can't begin to guess"

"It's not a real word" Logan spoke up from in front, causing both James and Kendall to raise an eyebrow as they glanced at him. "Sorry, I know I'm not meant to be eavesdropping" Logan continued, causing James to shake his head briefly.

"What do you mean it's not a real word?" James asked, causing Logan to shrug as he unlocked the door to the supercomputer room. Thankfully no one was in there, so they didn't have to wait to use it.

"Exactly what I said. 'Metasis' isn't an actual word. However, the prefix 'meta' can mean 'after,' and suffix 'sis' can mean a process or action, so if you look at it that way, it could literally be-"

"After an action or process," James interrupted, as he completed Logan's sentence. "But what action or process?"

"I guess that's what we're going to find out" Kendall stated, as he squeezed James' hand once again.

That action alone seemed to calm the brunet a little bit, but Kendall noticed how close James was standing to him. Clearly, all this waiting was taking a toll on him, so Kendall hoped that he could be some sort of help. As Logan shoved the memory stick into the computer, James felt his heartrate spike dramatically, and it only seemed to increase as the scientist tapped away throughout the initial process.

"Ok, so it's looking better this time" Logan began, as he turned back towards Kendall and James. "It says it's going to take roughly an hour to crack it" Logan continued, causing James to let out a sigh of relief.

"Well, that's a lot better" he commented, Kendall, nodding beside. "Thank you for your help Doc. You can go now if you want" Kendall said, causing Logan to fidget ever so slightly. Kendall knew exactly what this meant, and he couldn't help the smirk that grew on his face when Logan started to explain.

"I think I'm gonna stay if that's alright" Logan began, turning back towards the supercomputer as he did so. "It's this name, Metasis. I don't know what it is or means and that's driving me crazy"

* * *

The passage of time seemed to slow dramatically as they all waited for this hour to conclude. Logan sat himself at the supercomputer, just watching as the progress bar filled while James spent the hour pacing up and down, hoping that it would miraculously finish. Kendall seemed to hover between the two of them, making sure that James was ok before also checking in with Logan and apologising for taking their focus away from work.

As soon as the supercomputer stated that about a minute was left, however, they all huddled around it, impatiently waiting for it to finish. When they all watched the process complete and the file unlock, James was suddenly hit with a wave of nausea and anxiety.

Still, he knew he didn't come this far only to forfeit on the entire thing. As Logan began to scroll through the file, James reviewed everything in extreme detail, trying to find something that could explain this nagging feeling he had about it.

"By the looks of it, it's just a bunch of medical files" Logan was the first to speak, causing James to nod behind him before his eyes landed on something different.

"What about that one?" James asked, pointing towards a folder right at the bottom of the screen, causing Logan to click on it.

"It looks like a couple of video files" Kendall spoke up as they began to scroll once again.

"Load the first one. Maybe it'll give us some answers as to what is going on" James stated, causing Logan to comply, finding the video file with the earliest date before double-clicking on it.

An image of James' dad's office filled the screen, causing curiosity to rise as the overriding emotion. Thankfully, Logan was quick to press play, the whole room settling into silence as they watched.

* * *

 _"The test results have confirmed what I said, you've got Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis. I got the results verified by other doctors, so this, unfortunately, isn't mistakable" Doctor Burrens began, causing Henry to nod as he swallowed the lump in his throat._

 _"Ok, so what can be done about it?" Henry asked, causing Doctor Burrens to let out a sigh._

 _"Honestly, not much. Lung replacements are a possibility, but at the state, you're currently in, they're not a necessity so trying to get a pair could be difficult. On top of that, even if we could get them, there's a high chance that you wouldn't survive the next 5 years" Doctor Burrens continued, before passing James' dad a piece of paper. "I'm working on something that might act as a solution but it's too early to be sure. As for the moment, there is a document stating you've only got the common cold. I know you said your son is worried so that should alleviate his stress"_

 _"Thank you, Doctor," Henry said before the recording cut off._

* * *

"When was the second one dated?" James asked as soon as the first one ended, causing Logan to glance at the file.

"It's dated a couple of weeks afterwards," Logan replied, doubling clicking the video and pressing play.

* * *

 _"We've titled the project Metasis" Dr Burrens began as she stood in front a small screen with a PowerPoint on it. "It's been well documented that some animals such as mice can regenerate tissues within their bodies and the same can be said for their vital organs" Doctor Burrens continued, causing Henry to lean forward in his chair slightly._

 _"But surely a mouse isn't going to be able to grow an entire set of human lungs" Henry stated, causing Doctor Burrens to shake her head._

 _"You're correct, they're not," Doctor Burrens said before flicking onto the new slide. "However, the coding for this process is within the mice's cells and all it would take for them to be translated into a human is for the right gene to be identified and utilised. Which brings me to introducing ERKA, or what we've called Eureka." Doctor Burrens continued, now showing the DNA strand on the screen. "This is the gene responsible for the regeneration, and after extensive testing on both animal and human organs, we've discovered that its capability can translate over"_

 _"So, you're going to inject me with mice DNA in the hopes that it will repair my lungs?" Henry asked as he leant back in his chair. "Can I ask what the side effects are? Like maybe mutating into a giant mouse?" Henry asked, causing Doctor Burrens to let out a soft chuckle._

 _"I can assure you that no such thing could happen. As for other side effects, nothing has been reported and the tests we've run show no evidence of anything. Just like of it like getting a vaccine" Doctor Burrens stated, causing Henry to nod slowly as he began to consider the treatment._

 _"And I'm guessing you're presenting this to me because it's the only option left," Henry asked, causing Doctor Burrens to nod._

 _"Unfortunately so. No other option is going to ensure the same results that this doesn't." Dr Burrens replied, causing Henry to let out a soft sigh._

 _"Alright then, I suppose that settles it," Henry said, pushing himself up from his seat. "I suppose the last thing to mention is that I want James kept in the dark about this. He's been through enough recently and the last thing I want to do is for him to suffer any more." Henry concluded before the recording cut off._

* * *

"Is there anything else?" James asked immediately, causing Logan to shake his head.

"They're the only two video files"

"What about the medical files? Is there anything there?" James asked, causing Logan to back out from the video folder as he glanced through the dates until he found one dated a few days after the last video. Clicking on it, they were all greeted with a report causing Logan to briefly skim through it.

"This doesn't say much. Only that the procedure went ahead" Logan concluded, causing him to glance back at James once again who had so many emotions written on his face. It took him a few minutes to settle down, and as he did so, he let out a deep sigh.

"It is even possible?" James asked, causing Kendall to quickly wrap his arms around James, seeing how weak-kneed his boyfriend had become.

"I mean, theoretically is it" Logan stated, as he loaded up each report one by one before skimming them. "And the science is certainly there in these reports. It's all laid out, from the initial tests to how they came up with the idea"

"But what does that actually mean? That my dad is now part mouse?" James asked as he let out a soft chuckle, hoping that would mask the tears welling slowly in his eyes.

"I think so?" Kendall stated, causing everyone to glance at him.

"You can't be serious" James stated, his eyes wide as Kendall stuttered for a brief second, trying to find his words.

"I mean, think about it. A mouse genome was injected into your father, designed to regenerate his organs. Who's to say that it didn't evolve or mutate while in his system." Kendall continued, as he pieced everything together in his head. "And without completely jumping to conclusions, it could explain Doctor Burrens murder"

"You cannot be serious" James stated once again, taking a step so that he could separate himself from Kendall, only to stare at him with shock written on his face.

"Think about it, James. It would explain how someone got into her office without forcing entry. Mice are renown for getting into really tight spaces. For all we know, he could have climbed through the air vents. And the claw marks? Mice have claws so that they can climb surfaces, so it is possible that your father has-"

"Are you trying to state that my father has turned into a giant mouse? You cannot be fucking serious right now! Are you even hearing yourself? Doctor Burrens stated that it wasn't even possible" James asked, letting out another laugh, but this time, the tears welling in his eyes were more prominent.

"The same could be said for me, James. No one would have ever thought that I would have the ability to create and manipulate ice, but here I am" Kendall stated as the tears began to streak down James' face.

"Doctor, is it? It is possible?" James asked, turning towards Logan, who let out a sigh.

"Normally, I'd say that it's not, but to be honest, I don't know what to think anymore. In this city, it appears that anything could be possible" Logan replied, causing James to let out a sigh as he dropped down onto the closest seat.

"Look, I'm not saying that this has happened, I'm just stating it's a possibility. Maybe Doctor Burrens was right, and it couldn't have happened. Just let Logan and I look through the rest of the medical notes to try and find anything, but just…I just want you to be aware of every possibility" Kendall stated, placing a small kiss onto James' cheek.

As Kendall and Logan got to work, James' mind began to reel with what everyone had said, but the more James thought about the insanity of it all, the closer he came to the realisation that Kendall could be right.

* * *

 **So there we have it! They managed to crack the file, and boy did they learn some interesting things from it! As I said, this chapter is long overdue but hopefully, this makes up for it a little bit!  
**

 **I want to say a massive thank you to Winterschild11, Guest, RainbowDiamonds and EpicallyObsessed for reviewing the last chapter and I'm so glad you enjoyed it! As to whether James' dad's heart is int the right place, well I feel like this lets onto that a little bit! And I have to admit, I'm curious to see what you guys thought would be on the file, so let me know!**

 **I hope you all have a great week and I will see you all next Monday for the next chapter of whatever I will write and post. At the moment, it's a 50/50 split, so odds on anyone? But until then,**

 **TTFN 😀❄**


	38. Chapter 38

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! Not much to say here today, so let's crack on with it, shall we?**

* * *

As Kendall and Logan looked over the medical files, James couldn't help but stew about everything that had been discovered. Saying it had come as a big shock to him was definitely an understand and while he suspected that his dad was involved in some…less conventional dealings, both in business and in his personal life, James could have never guessed this, even if he did have a million guesses. As he stewed, another thought dawned on his mind.

"Wait a second. I saw my dad earlier today, so surely if he was part mouse then I would have seen it" James said out loud, causing Kendall and Logan to glance over at him. "So, surely he can't be" James concluded, now glancing back at the two scientists, who exchanged a brief, unconvinced look at each other. "Right?" James asked, his voice shaking as he did so.

"Not necessarily" Logan spoke up first, causing James' eyes to cast down towards the floor. "I mean, take Kendall for instant. Just by looking at him, you wouldn't know about the genetic mutations that have occurred, but they're there"

"The same could be said for Inferno" Kendall interrupted, causing Logan to nod. "He would just look like a regular person until he activated his powers"

"But that's different" James stated, glancing back at the two of them, tears brimming in his eyes. "Because the two of you are mutated with…elements but my dad's been injected with mouse DNA. Surely that would have some impact on his physiology" James continued, causing Kendall to let out a sigh as he wiped the few tears from James' eyes.

"I promise we're going to get to the bottom of this. As I said, we're going to look through every medical file and see what comes up" Kendall stated, causing James to nod.

Placing a kiss onto James' cheek, Kendall headed back over to Logan as the two of them began to review the data while James just stewed even more. Another ten minutes passed, with James' mind constantly coming to the same conclusion. Looking over at Logan and Kendall once again, James let out a sigh before he spoke up.

"I think we need to tell Carlos about this" he stated, causing both Kendall and Logan to stop what they were doing as they turned towards him.

"What?" Kendall asked in shock, causing James to clear his throat ever so slightly, even though he knew what wasn't the issue.

"I think we need to tell Carlos about my dad being a giant mouse. He wanted to be kept updated and that's exactly what this is, an update" James continued, causing Kendall to glance to Logan briefly, who was just as shocked as he was, before replying.

"James, are you sure that's wise? Just a minute ago, you didn't want to believe it was real and now you're ready to turn him over without proof?" Kendall replied, causing James to point towards the supercomputer.

"We have proof, Kendall, it's right there," James said before letting out a sigh as he dropped his arm down. "I don't want to turn him over; I'm just saying that it's probably wise if Carlos was informed about this whole thing" James justified causing Kendall to sit beside him.

"James, we don't really even know if this is the case or not. I was just preparing you for the worst possible outcome." Kendall began, but James was quick to interrupt.

"I think we both know what this is the case Kendall, and no matter how much you tell me it isn't, isn't going to change that." James began, causing Kendall to cast his eyes down to the ground. "Plus, you said it yourself, this would explain everything that surrounds Doctor Burrens murder. I just think it would be wise if Carlos was informed about all of this and then maybe he could send some officers to keep an eye on my dad or something, in case he goes to do something like this again" James finished, causing Kendall to let out a sigh.

Before the blond had a chance to respond, Logan interrupted the conversation. "I'm guessing you're talking about Carlos Garcia, the police chief. He knows as well?" Logan asked, causing both Kendall and James to nod as Logan let out a sigh. "Then I agree with James, I think he should be involved. I'm not going to lie to you James, from what we've read, it's not looking good. The science is all here and from what I can tell, the mouse DNA was not only expected to merge with your dad's DNA, it was intended. The only way your dad's lungs were going to be healed was if the mouse DNA became one with your dads. It's not like the DNA was just going to focus on the lungs and leave everything else alone. There was bound to be side effects that weren't predicted" Logan stated, causing James to nod once again, this time his body language filled with dejection.

Still, James felt like it was better to have an honest answer than reassured everything would be ok when it wasn't.

"So, we're in agreement? Carlos should know" James stated, causing Kendall to let out a sigh beside him. The blond still wasn't sure about all of this, but the pain-riddled look on James' face said it all.

"Alright, he should know but I want to be the one to call him here" Kendall conceded, causing both Logan and James to nod.

"I'll get everything sorted here. We don't need the supercomputer anymore, so I'll make sure all the files are deleted" Logan said, causing Kendall to flash him a small smile as he walked out of the room.

With a sigh, Kendall found himself dialling Carlos' number, who picked up on the third ring. "Hi Carlos, it's Kendall. We've got an update on the case, so would you be able to come to SCU?" Kendall asked before a thought popped into his mind. "Would it also be possible to bring Doctor Burrens' hard drive?"

* * *

' _He's been through enough recently and the last thing I want is for him to suffer more.'_ The recording said once more, this time as Carlos had just finished watching it, before the police chief turned towards Kendall as the blond began to explain everything.

"So, what we think happened was that the mouse DNA has merged with Mr Diamond's and has caused him to mutate into a giant mouse or at least gain mouse-like qualities. It would explain Doctor Burrens' murder as he would have been able to crawl through the air ducts, strike her with his claws and then get away again without being noticed. That's why we needed Doctor Burrens' hard drive, so we could see if she had any more information on it" Kendall explained, causing Carlos to nod along.

Although the look on his face showed that he was having a bit of a hard time believing it.

"Is it even possible for something like this to happen? For someone to merge mouse DNA with a human's and then for them to become a giant mouse?"

"It's not only possible, but it was intended as well" Logan spoke up, pulling his head away from his laptop where he was analysing files on Doctor Burrens' hard drive. "I won't bore with the science, but Doctor Burrens' has laid it all out here. The mouse genome was to attach itself to human DNA and then to start replicating those cells. By doing that, Mr Diamond could quickly be flooded with mouse-human hybrid DNA instead of his own"

"And you are?" Carlos asked, causing Logan to fidget ever so slightly as he was placed under an intense gaze from Carlos.

"I'm um Logan Mitchell. I'm Kendall's supervisor at work"

"Don't worry Chief, he knows as well" Kendall quickly added, causing Carlos to nod.

"Anyway, as I was going to say, it seems Doctor Burrens' was lying on the video when she said that there would be no side effects. According to her files, she'd been doing tests not only on animal and human organs but also on live subjects. She's stated here in her files that they were aware of this type of mutation, except it doesn't look like it was on such a grand scale. Some people were developing claws, others were developing a keen sense of smell etcetera but with each new version of it, the symptoms were taking longer to surface. It's entirely possible that she believed that the version she gave Mr Diamond was clear of all of these, whereas in fact they just had a longer incubation period" Logan explained, causing James to cast his eyes down to the ground while Kendall moved over to the computer to review the files himself.

It took a few minutes for someone to speak up again, with Carlos being the one to initiate it.

"Ok, so what about a cure? It is something that could reverse the damage?" Carlos asked, causing tears to well in James' eyes almost immediately.

The brunet had been so shellshocked that he hadn't even considered what could be done for this father. Everything seemed to be crashing down around him and the walls seemed to be closing in on him as his breathing shallowed.

"Excuse me," James said as he quickly jumped up from his seat and bolted for the corridor, not even looking behind him as he left. Everyone in the room glanced at each other for a brief second, before Kendall let out a sigh.

"I'll go see if he's ok. This is a lot for him" Kendall explained, causing both Carlos and Logan to nod.

James wasn't too difficult to find once Kendall had left the room, as he was sat at the end of the corridor with his knees against his chest. Reaching the brunet, Kendall knelt down in front of him and laced his fingers through James.

"What the fuck Kendall?" James asked, and Kendall could hear that he was sobbing as he spoke.

Of course, Kendall couldn't help but feel slightly offended by the statement consider all he'd done was be there for James, but thankfully that feeling was put to rest when James continued.

"What the fuck did I do in a past life to have this life be so fucked up. I mean, my mother died, my father stopped caring about me completely, I watched my father's building get blown to smithereens, I was attacked by a superhero out to kill me in my own apartment that was completely destroyed and then I find out that my dad has terminal illness and that in an attempt to cure himself, he's turned himself into a giant mouse after walking in on a dead body" James said as the tears continued to stream down his face.

"You also forgot that you had to nurse a superhero back to health, only to find out that it was your boyfriend" Kendall added, causing James to glare at him slightly through the tears.

"That doesn't help" James stated, trying to pull away from Kendall a little bit, but the blond was quick to pull him back in.

"We're going to get to the bottom of this James, I promise. Logan is the smartest person I know and if there is anyone that is going to be able to do this, it's going to be him. And if he can't, then we'll just have to bring someone else in that can. I promise you, James, this is all going to be ok"

"I love him so much" James admitted, cuddling into Kendall as he did so. "No matter what he says to me, I still love him Kendall and I can't get that last line from the video out of my head. He said that he doesn't want me to suffer more, so maybe I was wrong, maybe he does love me back" James continued, causing Kendall to rub soothing circles on James' back.

"I'm sure he loves you, James, you're his son and I promise, once everything is sorted out, you can have a chat with him, and find out what he really feels" Kendall stated, causing James to nod as he sniffled and wiped his eyes.

"I love you so much as well" James stated with a soft smile, causing Kendall to place a kiss onto James' forehead.

"I love you too" Kendall replied, wiping some stray tears away. "Now come on. We should get back in there and see what Logan has come up with in terms of a cure" Kendall continued, causing James to nod. Kendall helped James to his feet before the two of them made their way back into the room.

As they did so, they caught the last few sentences of Carlos and Logan's conversation.

"It was that night he fell off the balcony. I saw the video of it and manage to enhance it. After that, I confronted him about it and then he practically told me" Logan said, causing Carlos to nod as he let out a little chuckle.

"It was the same with me. Both Kendall and 'Blizzard' had told me that Kendall was falling, and Blizzard caught him in his arms, but the video showed that he landed on an ice slide before Blizzard even reached him. From there, it was pretty easy piecing it all together" Carlos stated causing Logan to let out a little chuckle.

When the two of them heard Kendall and James approaching however, their conversation stopped, the two of them flashing both Kendall and James a smile.

"So, is there a possibility of a cure?" Kendall asked, bringing the topic back causing Logan to let out a soft sigh.

"Once again, it's theoretically possible" Logan admitted, causing James and Kendall to raise an eyebrow.

"I'm getting sick of that word" James mumbled under his breath, causing Kendall to let out a little chuckle as Logan went to explain.

"Since the mouse DNA is integrated into your father's system, it's going to be difficult to 'cure' them however it might be possible to destroy them after they've reproduced. If we reprogram white blood cells to attack the DNA, then they'd be constantly destroying the new genes, leaving only your father's original DNA. It might not be enough to cure him as the mouse DNA is produced as a significant rate, but it might be enough to stop him from exhibiting the mouse qualities" Logan explained, before letting out a sigh. "However, since I have a doctorate in Glaciology and not in modern medicine or gene manipulation, this is far out of my capabilities. Analysing medical files is something completely different to actually practising medicine"

"So, we just need to find a geneticist who will do this for us" Kendall stated, causing Logan to nod before the blond began to glance around the room.

"I think I might know someone who can help" James stated, causing everyone to glance at him, curiosity written on their faces.

* * *

 **So there we have it! Carlos now knows and Logan may have come up with some sort of cure to help James' father! The real question now is who does James know that could help them? And also, will this cure actually work?**

 **I want to say a massive thank you to Winterschild11, Guest and RainbowDiamonds for reviewing the last chapter and by the looks of it, I surprised you all! Yeah, this is definitely an out-there storyline, but I'm hoping you're enjoying it nonetheless! I have to admit though, I am curious to see what you guys thought was going to happen!**

 **Anyway, I hope you all have a good week and I will see you all on Monday for the next chapter of this as we're close to the end now! But until then,**

 **TTFN 😀❄**


	39. Chapter 39

**Hi Guys and welcome back to Blizzard! So, it's been roughly a month since I uploaded last and when I say roughly, I mean exactly a month tomorrow, so a recap is definitely warranted. Basically, James' Dad has potentially turned into a mouse-man hybrid and they need to come up with a cure! Luckily, James may know someone who can help!**

 **That's pretty much it, so let's crack on shall we?**

* * *

Kendall, Carlos and Logan all glanced at each other at James' confession before Kendall finally asked the question. "You know someone who could help? Who?" he asked, causing James to shrug slightly.

"He's this super smart guy that I met at university. He works in genetics and stuff and he owes me a favour" James replied, before turning towards Logan. "Do you know where the biologists ended up?"

"I…yeah, they're just in a lab across campus" Logan replied, before letting out a sigh. "But are you sure this guy can be trusted?" he continued, causing James to nod.

"He can be trusted not to say anything. If we don't tell him too much, and only what he needs to know as well as the fact that it's urgent, then I'm sure he'd be willing to help"

"Well, that's promising" Logan mumbled sarcastically under his breath, causing James to glance over at him.

"Do you have any other ideas?" James asked, causing Logan to shake his head.

"James is right, we're low on options and if this is a lead then I suggest we follow it" Carlos spoke up, causing James to flash him a small smile.

"Thanks, Chief" James replied, before letting out a sigh. "So, it's decided then? We'll go and see him?" James asked, causing everyone to very hesitantly nod.

All except Carlos.

"I'll go get the data ready" Logan spoke up before Carlos said his piece.

"While you guys go and do this, I'm going to go to Diamond Inc. Someone should have eyes on Mr Diamond and besides, it's the next logical course of action if I'm investigating the death of Doctor Burrens. I can question him, and keep an eye out for anything suspicious" Carlos said, causing James to briefly open his mouth to object before closing it. This didn't go unnoticed by Carlos however. "You looked like you had some objections to that James" Carlos stated, causing James to shake his head.

"No, you're right, it is the logical thing for you to do and it would provide us with at least some idea as to what states he's in now" James replied, his eyes casting down to the floor briefly. "Just, go easy on him," James asked, causing Carlos to nod ever so slightly.

"I will do, don't worry. I'm not going to do anything to provoke him, I'm just gonna ask some questions" Carlos replied, causing a faint smile to grow on James' face.

With that, the two teams got ready to head off, with Logan grabbing a memory stick with limited data on it and Kendall grabbing his backpack, just in case he needed to make a quick exit.

* * *

"So, how do you know this scientist?" Kendall asked as he, James and Logan walked over to the lab across campus.

"Oh, we dated throughout college" James shrugged but Kendall couldn't help the jealously that spiked through his chest. To have gone through all of this with James, only to get jealous over an ex was ridiculous and Kendall knew this, but that still didn't stop the feeling.

"Can I ask why he owes you a favour?" Kendall then asked, causing James to shrug once again.

"He kind of owes me his job" James stated, causing Kendall to raise his eyebrow once again, James rolling his eyes as he did so. "It's not what you're thinking. One day I brought him home to meet my dad and the two of them got talking about biology and whatnot. I had no clue what was going on, but my dad certainly seemed to know about it all and at the end of the conversation, my dad offered him a job. It wasn't intentional" James explained, causing Kendall to nod once again.

The two of them went silent for a bit as Kendall thought over what James had said. A few seconds later, another question popped into his head.

"How come you never introduced me to your dad?" Kendall asked, causing James to glance at him slightly.

"Really? With everything going on, that's the question you're going to ask me?" James replied, causing Kendall to roll his eyes.

"What? It was just a question, I'm just curious" Kendall stated, causing James to let out a sigh.

"You know how I am with my dad. Back then, I suppose I felt like I still needed his approval and that, but now, it's not like that. I don't need him telling me who I should date, or whether he approves or not. All that matters is how I feel towards them" James explained, causing a small smile to grow on Kendall's face. "Besides, you have technically met him and if I'm being honest, that meeting was going to be just as good as any official meeting with him" James stated, causing Kendall to let out a soft chuckle, thinking back to how Henry had treated him when he'd saved his life.

If that's how he acted to a hero, Kendall hated to think how he'd act towards a regular person.

As conversation stopped, the three of them reached the lab, causing them to quickly climb the stairs as James now toom the lead. Walking through the corridors, James kept his eye out for a familiar name, and as soon as he stopped it, he turned back to face the two of them.

"Remember, don't say why we're here. All he needs to know is that we need him to do something for us and whether he can do it or not" James stated, causing both Kendall and Logan to nod. With that, James knocked on the door and waited for a response, which came in the form of the door opening.

"James Diamond, it's certainly been a while," the man said, flashing James a huge smile.

"Dr Stetson" James replied, causing Jett to let out a chuckle.

"Just call me Jett" Jett replied, as he glanced at Kendall and Logan before turning his attention back to James. "And who might these be?"

"This is Logan Mitchell and Kendall Knight, two researchers for Diamond Inc" James replied, causing Jett to extend his hand out to both of them, Kendall shaking it begrudgingly as his jealously spiked once again.

"Anyway, what brings you here?" Jett asked, causing James to let out a soft sigh.

"I'd rather not discuss it here. Can we come in?" James asked, causing Jett to nod, moving away from the door and further into his lab. Kendall couldn't help but put his hand on James' waist as they walked in before they all took a seat. "So, what's up?" Jett asked, causing James to let out a sigh.

"I need to know if it's possible to destroy a specific DNA cell" James stated, causing Jett's eyes to widen.

"Can I ask why you're inquiring?" Jett asked, causing James to shrug.

"You can ask, but I'm not going to tell you" James replied, before seeing Logan pull the memory stick out of his pocket.

"This contains all of the information you'll need" Logan stated, causing Jett to grab it with confusion all of this face. Shoving it into his computer, Jett began to review the limited information Logan has given him, but it was more than enough for him to get a basic understanding.

"James, why are you asking me to do this. I mean, this is so pretty serious genome alteration. It would be completely unethical for anyone to work on this, let alone come up with a way to counter it without some sort of valid reas-"

A ringing phone cut off Jett as Kendall quickly pull the vibrating object from his pocket. Seeing it was Carlos, Kendall was quick to pick up as the blond bolted from the room.

"We have a problem" Carlos announced as soon as Kendall picked up the phone, not giving the blond a chance to talk. "I've just arrived and found someone laid on the floor with lacerations across their chest, looks like the butler. EMT's are on their way but so far, I haven't seen Mr Diamond. I can hear scuttering coming from a room nearby though, so you need to get here immediately, I think he's changed"

"I'll be right there" Kendall stated, turning when he heard footsteps from behind.

"You better be, I'm going to investigate" Carlos replied before cutting off, leaving Kendall to let out a sigh.

"Who was that?" James asked with an eyebrow raised, causing Kendall to run his hands through his hair.

"It was Carlos. He said that he's just arrived at the apartment and he's found someone on the floor with lacerations across his chest. He said it looked like the butler" Kendall explained, causing James' eyes to widen.

"Butters" James muttered under his breath as tears started to gather in his eyes. "What else did he say?"

"Only that he heard scuttering coming from a nearby room, so he's gone to investigate and that I should get there right away" Kendall continued, as he now began to head towards the closest bathroom, James keeping pace with him.

"I'm coming with you," James stated, causing Kendall to shake his head.

"No way, it's too dangerous" Kendall stated, as he headed into a bathroom, before pulling his top off, revealing suit underneath. As the blond changed, James continued to argue his point.

"Why not? He's my father and there might be a chance that I can talk him down or something. If I can help, then I want too" James stated, as Kendall shoved his clothes into his backpack.

"You can help by staying safe and getting Jett to develop that cure. That's the only way we're going to fix this." Kendall began, placing a kiss on James' forehead before pulling his mask over his face. "Besides, you mean far too much to me and I'm not going to let you risk your life like that" Kendall continued, pulling away from James before heading to the window.

"But I'm supposed to be ok with you risking yours?" James asked as Kendall lifted the window up and began to climb out of it.

"Trust me, this is for the best. I love you" Kendall finished, before creating an ice slide and dropping down into it.

Before James even had a chance to argue his point again, Kendall had skated away, causing the brunet to pick up the blond's backpack from the floor, swinging it over his shoulder as he made his way back towards Jett's lab.

* * *

"Can you do it or not?" James asked Jett directly as he walked back into the lab, causing him to startle briefly at James' voice.

"Where's Kendall?" Logan asked, but his question went unanswered as James asked once again.

"Can you do it or not?"

"Yeah, of course, I can do it, but that isn't the issue" Jett replied, before letting out a sigh. "This isn't ethical"

"I don't care if it's ethical. Are you doing to do it for me, or do I need to find someone else who will? After all, you do owe me" James stated, trying to blink the tears away from his eyes a discreetly as possible.

Still, it didn't seem to go unnoticed by Jett, who let out a soft sigh as his eyes flicked to the floor before back to James.

"Fine, I'll do it. But after this, I'll require some sort of explanation as to why I've wasted company resources on a private project" Jett replied, causing James to nod as Jett began to get to work.

As he did so, Logan pulled James away briefly, his eyes narrowing on James as he kept a firm grip on his arm.

"What is going on? Where's Kendall?" Logan asked in a hushed whisper, causing James to let out a sigh as a couple of tears fell from his eyes.

"He got a call from Carlos, who said that he thinks my dad has turned. He found our butler injured on the floor and he could hear scuttering coming from a nearby room, so Kendall's gone to help. I need to get there, but could you stay with Jett and get this cure done as fast as possible?" James asked, causing Logan to nod as he let go of James' arm.

"Go, I promise I'll let you know as soon as we've got something" Logan replied, causing James to nod.

With that, the brunet found himself pacing out of the lab as he headed towards his childhood home.

He only hoped he got there before anything even worse happened.

* * *

 **So there we got! A bit of a shorter chapter today, but it looks like everything is coming together with Jett and Logan working on a cure for them while Kendall and James go to help Carlos!**

 **I want to say a massive thank you to Guest, Winterschild11, EpicallyObsessed and RainbowDiamonds for reviewing the last chapter and I'm so glad you enjoyed it! You're all rooting for a cure to be found, so hopefully, this chapter helps reassure you all, but if you've learnt anything from my stories, it's that nothing is easy!**

 **Also, a massive thank you for bearing with me with this upload. It's been a mad few weeks, with uni and my dissertation being due but now it's all calmed down, relatively speaking, I should be able to get back on an upload schedule!** **I also want to wish you all the best with everything that's going on recently! It certainly seems to have come out of nowhere so I hope you that you're all doing ok and feeling alright!**

 **I hope you all have a great week and I will see you all next Monday for the next chapter of this! Until then, stay safe and**

 **TTFN 😀❄**


	40. Chapter 40

**Hi Guys and Welcome back to the final chapter of Blizzard! That's right, this is the last chapter of this very long-lasting story! I want to say a massive thank you for everyone who stuck with me throughout all of this! But more of that after, so let's crack on with this for the final time, shall we?**

* * *

As Kendall approached the building where the Diamond apartment was located, he heard the very distinctive sound of a shot going off, as well as a window shattering around the other side of the building. Picking up his pace, Kendall skated towards the sound, where he saw the shattered window, as well as Carlos slumped against a wall, holding his arm which looked to be pouring blood. The blond was quick to slide into the window, before running up to the police officer and crouching down in front of him.

"Are you ok? I heard a gunshot" Kendall asked, causing Carlos to nod as he pushed himself up the wall.

"I'm fine, but I was right, Mr Diamond has already transformed." Carlos began, pulling his hand away from his arm, revealing scratch marks. "When I walked in here, he leapt at me from the ceiling. Thankfully, I was able to get a shot off before he properly got me and then he scurried out of the window to the roof"

"Did the bullet hit him?" Kendall asked, causing Carlos to shrug ever so slightly, looking at his wound once again.

"I'm not sure, it all happened so fast. It either hit him, and that's why he ran, or the noise was enough to scare him off. Still, you should get up to the room and end this as quickly as possible"

"What about you? Are you going to be ok?" Kendall asked, causing Carlos to nod, adjusting his gun in his holster.

"I'll be fine. Now, you better get up to the roof and fast before Mr Diamond hurts anyone else"

"Alright, stay safe" Kendall replied, before turning back towards the window.

This had to end now.

Before anyone else got hurt.

* * *

As Kendall landed on the roof of the apartment block, he took a cautious glance around to see if he could find anything. However, the whole place looked completely devoid of life, with the only sound being the whirring from air conditioning units as well as the traffic noise from below. Knowing he was probably going to regret it in a few seconds, Kendall called out.

"Mr Diamond?" Kendall called out, slowly taking a step forward as he went to investigate where Mr Diamond was. "I'm here to help" Kendall continued to talk as he walked slowly, keeping an eye out of any sign of movement, except he saw and heard nothing.

He was starting to feel unsettled.

The whole situation was unsettling to him because he couldn't shake the feeling that he was being watched, despite the fact that nothing told him he was. Taking one more step towards, Kendall peered his head around one of the larger air conditioning units only to find nothing, like the rest of his search, has entailed.

However, in a split-second decision, based on gut instinct alone, Kendall found himself diving to his right, hitting the floor pretty hard.

Still, the decision seemed to be the right one as quickly after he hit the floor, he heard the sound of metal being scratched as well as the sound of a pipe bursting letting out coolant. As Kendall pushed himself to his feet that's when he got the first glance of Mr Diamond, which was only a pair of dark eyes glaring at him through the white fog before they disappeared once again.

Kendall couldn't help the fear that came over him, the blond having to swallow a very large lump that had formed in his throat, but he knew that the only way this was going to get better was if it got worse first.

Prepping himself properly for a fight now, Kendall tried to focus his ears onto any sign that Mr Diamond was moving around, but the hissing coming from the depressurizing gas in the air conditioning unit made it very difficult. It was only made worse when Kendall felt something swipe at his legs, causing him to drop to the floor face first.

Rolling over, Kendall was faced with what could probably be described as the most terrifying sight he'd ever seen.

* * *

"Come on, pick up!" James said to himself as he called Carlos for the third time since he'd gotten into the taxi. Still, as the phone rung, there was no sign of answer, only increasing James' anxiety about the whole situation.

There had been no updates from anyone since had left, and while that was only about 10 minutes prior, James couldn't help the nerves that were building in his chest. That all changed however when a notification came up on James' phone and as soon as he saw the word Blizzard, he clicked on it, not even bothering to read the full title.

The notification took him to the Dispatch Weekly helicopter that seemed to be circling the roof of the apartment and James' eyes caught sight of Kendall before then catching a quick glimpse of something that looked far more awful.

James couldn't help the gasp that escapes his mouth as is phone fell to his lap, the brunet dropping out of shock.

* * *

Kendall couldn't believe the sight that was before his eyes. Mr Diamond, or something that probably once resembled him, towered over the blond, roughly 7 foot in height all of which seemed to be pure muscle. The claws that extruded from what looked like paws were sharp and strong enough to cut through metal which Kendall had learnt for himself only moments ago, and a long tail swept behind the towering giant, seemingly with a mind of its own. Still, Kendall knew that was responsible for bringing him down to the floor, so he knew not to underestimate its power.

"So, you're this fabled hero that the city seemed enamoured with" Mr Diamond leered, but Kendall couldn't focus on the tone of his voice but rather the fact that he had one.

"You can talk?" Kendall questioned, his voice shaking slightly as he asked causing a smug grin to grow on Mr Diamond's mouse-like face.

"Of course I can talk! I'm a hyper-intelligent being, of course, I'm capable of speech." Mr Diamond began before his comments directed at Kendall began to turn into incessant rambling. "Speech? Of course, I'm capable of speech. I can talk. Talk talk talk, see, I'm talking" Mr Diamond said, his blackened eyes trailing from Kendall to the ground next to him.

Seeing this as a chance to get up off the floor, Kendall tried to discreetly move, but it didn't go missed from Mr Diamond, who went from incessant rambling to almost a foot away from the blond as he growled in his face.

"I didn't say you could leave" Mr Diamond sneered, his claws now bowing over Kendall's arms to keep his place as a small bit of saliva dropped onto Kendall's cheek.

"Mr Diamond, please! Something went wrong with Dr Burrens experiment and you need to let us help you!" Kendall insisted, trying his best not to move which he felt would only make the situation worst.

"Wrong? Nothing is wrong! I feel stronger, I feel powerful, more powerful then I have in years!" Mr Diamond leered, before rambling to himself a bit more, almost like a switch kept flipping. "Yes, strong. Powerful! I feel so good, so powerful, so strong!"

"You need to let us help you! Please, think of your son!" Kendall tried once again, this time hoping that the mention of James would help. Instead, it turned Mr Diamond's attention back to Kendall, with the 7-foot creature now putting more pressure on Kendall's arms, the claws beginning to draw blood.

"I don't need help! What I need to be, is rid of you Blizzard! Ever since you showed up in this city, I've been targeted, my business has been targeted and it's all because of the supervillains that you've brought with you. With you gone, they'll be gone as well" Mr Diamond stated, the switch flipping once again as he began to talk to himself. "That's right. Get rid of Blizzard, and the villains should leave. I'll get my security back and my business will be safe. Yes, this is Blizzard's fault, all Blizzard's fault. His fault, his fault! The only choice I have is to kill him!"

To say Kendall felt uncomfortable was an understatement and that wasn't just because of the claws digging into his arms. Mr Diamond was talking about him almost like he wasn't even there and yet they were both very aware of each other's presences. Kendall's internal monologue seemed to stop however when Mr Diamond's beady blackened eyes turned their attention back to the blond. Kendall could see his own reflection in them, which only seemed to make the panic he was suffering worse.

"Don't worry, I'll make this quick" Mr Diamond leered, before removing his claw from Kendall's left arm.

The blond knew exactly what was going to happen, so was quick to react. Just as Mr Diamond's right claw began to swing towards him, Kendall shot ice into his eyes. The mouse-man hybrid panicked, quickly withdrawing from Kendall's body as he tried to remove the layer of ice and Kendall used this to his full advantage, pushing himself up from the floor before creating some distance between the two of them, a standoff now occurring.

"You couldn't have let this be easy could you!" Mr Diamond scorned as he stood to his full height, rolling his shoulder back as a show of force.

"Mr Diamond please, I'm going to ask you one last time! Stand down and let me help you" Kendall shouted, but when all he received in response was a growl, Kendall knew that wasn't going to be the case.

* * *

James jumped out of the taxi before it had even come to a complete stop outside the building and was quick to rip away a portion of the police tape that had cornered off the entrance. "Sir, you can't go in there!" He heard a police officer shout at him, but he ignored it as he sprinted towards the lift.

Thankfully, it was on the bottom floor when he reached it, so he was quick to slam on the button to take him to the top floor, completely disregarding the two officers that we're telling him to step out. By the time they'd reached the lift, the door was already closed and James' journey to the top floor began. The whole time, he panicked about what was going on with Kendall and his father. The last he'd seen from the news was Kendall getting himself free, but James' knew that things were only going to get worse from there.

When the lift doors opened, however, that all ceased to exist, with James catching a glimpse of Bitters being loaded onto a gurney.

"Bitters?" James asked as he approached the unconscious man, with an oxygen mask over his nose and face as well as medical gauze over his chest, completely soaked in blood.

"Sir, I'm going to need you to step away," One EMT said to him but their voice seemed to blur into the distance as James continued to look at Bitters and the damage caused to him. The thought that his dad wasn't capable of this crossed his mind, but the evidence to the contrary was very much present. Alongside Bitters being badly injured, James could see that his father's office was completely ruined. "Sir, you need to step aside!" The EMT asked again, this time James feeling his legs move yet not remembering commanding them to do so.

It all became clear when Carlos got into his eye line and he felt his back pressed against a wall. Glancing down, James saw Carlos' arm on his before the chief of police dropped it.

"What are you doing here? Do you have the cure?" Carlos said quietly so that no one around them would hear.

"What? No, I came to help" James replied, as everything began to focus back in once again, the first thing him noticing being the bandage on Carlos' arm. "Are you hurt?"

"No, I'm fine it's just a scratch" Carlos replied, causing James to raise his eyebrow slightly. "Look, if you really want to help, then get on the phone to Logan and ask him how the cure is coming along. Without that, there's nothing we can do but hope that Kendall's long enough for one to be synthesised" Carlos stated, before turning around to see Bitters on the gurney. "Alright everyone, this area is now off-limits. Once the EMT's are gone, I expect you all to evacuate to the first floor" Carlos shouted, directing his attention to the few officers on the floor with him.

With that, James pulled his phone from his pocket and began to dial Logan's number. The doctor picked up after a couple of rings and James didn't wait to start talking.

"How are you getting on? Is it done yet?" James asked immediately, but thankfully, Logan seemed to have the same urgency as he did.

"We're just about to synthesise a couple of doses of the cure now, so it's going to take about 5 minutes to fully complete" Logan replied, causing James to nod as he glanced up at Carlos, who was motioning for him to get into the lift.

"Alright. 5 minutes, we'll be there" James stated before cutting off the phone and joining Carlos.

"5 minutes until they're done?" Carlos asked as the lift door closed, causing James to nod. "Then we better get a move on"

As soon as the lift arrived at the ground floor, James and Carlos sprinted towards Carlos' patrol car. In and secured, Carlos blared the siren as the blue and red lights began to flash. There was no time to waste. The thought that Kendall was right, and that he should have just stayed at the university crossed James' mind, but the brunet pushed it to the back of his mind.

Right now, all he needed to be focused on was getting the cure and stopping everything with his dad.

* * *

Mr Diamond lunged for Kendall almost immediately after he'd growled and while the blond was expecting it, he hadn't expected Mr Diamond to move so fast. Kendall barely had enough time to dodge out of the way and as he recovered, he knew that he needed to try and level the playing field slightly.

The blond froze the floor, blasting it with a continuous stream of ice until the entire surface of the roof was covered, the whole time hoping that it would cause Mr Diamond to lose his balance.

After all, as much as Kendall knew a fight was necessary, he didn't want to explicitly injure the man. He was still James' dad under everything, and it could be said that this wasn't completely his fault.

Still, Kendall was knocked from his thoughts as Mr Diamond lunged at him for a second time, the blond narrowly missing this one once again. As Mr Diamond lanced, he slid across the ice for a few seconds before he gripped his claws into it, stopping his completely.

"You think you're so smart, freezing the floor like this, but this won't slow me down. I'm still going to kill you" Mr Diamond leered, now scratching claw marks into the ice as he crawled across it. Mr Diamond lunged once more at Kendall, and the blond couldn't help but get slightly cocky, already dodging the two before this.

What Kendall had missed, however, was Mr Diamond's tail, which now swept under him as Kendall focused on the main body of the mouse-man hybrid. Kendall plummeted onto his back and before he even had a chance to get back up, Mr Diamond grabbed his leg and flung him into the side of an electrical generator.

The impact from Kendall was enough to crease the metal, before Kendall dropped to the floor, pain radiating through his back. Still, Kendall knew that he couldn't give up now.

Pushing himself up from the floor, Kendall decided to go on the offensive, hoping to wound Mr Diamond, enough to stop him from attacking. With that, Kendall began to form and fling ice shards at him, hoping that they'd catch Mr Diamond in the arm or the leg and stop him from moving.

Instead, the villain used his sharp claws to cut the shards in half as they approached him, before lunging at the blond once again.

This time, Kendall created a shield, not having enough time to dodge out of the way, causing Mr Diamond's claws to lodge themselves in the object. The two of them were essentially face to face once again, with Kendall's ice shield being the only barrier between them.

"See, your pathetic powers can't stop me" Mr Diamond sneered, before using his lodged claws to rip the shield away from Kendall, throwing it over to the other side of the roof, and with Kendall distracted with that, he missed Mr Diamond's other set of claws coming up and stabbing themselves through his left shoulder.

Kendall couldn't help but let out a scream in pain, as Mr Diamond used them to raise Kendall into the air, bringing the two of them face to face. Kendall struggled the whole time, trying to use his other hand to do something but Mr Diamond was quick to grab that and restrict it, leaving only his legs which in this situation, we're pretty useless.

"You're nothing" Mr Diamond continued, now using his leverage to throw Kendall across to the other side of the roof, the blond now sliding on the ice he once thought could help him. The blond tried his best to push himself up, but before any progress was made, Mr Diamond had pounced on him once again, pinning him down with his claws and keeping him in place. "And now, before I kill you, I'm going to find out who you really are" Mr Diamond began, moving one of his hands away to reach for Kendall's mask.

This time, the villain didn't make the same mistake, moving a leg up to keep Kendall's arm secured and useless. As Mr Diamond began to slowly pull of Kendall's mask, the blond struggled and squirmed in some hopes that it would help but nothing seemed to be worked.

The bottom of the mask had now reached the bottom of Kendall's eyes and the blond knew that he couldn't do anything about it now. The whirring above him told him that a news helicopter was circling overhead, capturing the whole thing live so this was truly the end of his secret.

The blond grimaced, waiting for it all to be over, but when he heard a familiar voice, hope burst in his chest.

"Dad!" James' voice called out from over the rooftop, causing Mr Diamond to turn his attention away from the blond and towards his son. "Dad, why are you doing this? This isn't you" James continued, as he slowly began to approach his father, one hand firmly securing the cure behind him back while the other emoted with him. "You don't need to do this"

"But I do! Blizzard is the cause of everything! He's the reason that the supervillains are here in the first place!" Mr Diamond replied, keeping the pressure on Kendall so that he couldn't move.

"That's not true, Dad! Blizzard is the reason that you haven't lost everything. Without him, Inferno would have destroyed everything of yours and he would have killed me" James replied, now only a few metres away from his father. "Please, Dad. You don't have to do this." James said, crossing the distance so that he was right next to his father. "And please forgive me for this" James added, before revealing his hidden arm and stabbing Mr Diamond with the needle in it. Except nothing happened. Nothing except Mr Diamond rising to his full height in front of James, successful intimidating the brunet.

"Even my own son would turn on me to protect this filth" Mr Diamond stated, letting out a low growl as James slowly began to take a step back. "See, this is his doing. And once I've dealt with him, I'm going to have to deal with you"

Swallowing the lump in his throat, James watched as Mr Diamond turned his full attention back towards Kendall, sneering at the blond as he raised a claw into the air.

However, just as Mr Diamond was about to bring his claws down, the mouse-man hybrid screamed and began to thrash about, his claws catching James across the top of his arm before his tail swept James' feet out from under him. Suddenly the brunet was on the floor, watching as his father squirmed and thrashed about in pain.

Kendall was free once again and was quick to move over to James, trying to protect him as much as possible while Mr Diamond screeched and writhed in agony. Within seconds, however, the whole rooftop went silent, the agonised screams stopping, causing both Kendall and James to finally glance over at where the noises had last come from.

There laid Mr Diamond, back in human form and curled up into a ball, but all too quickly where they then surrounded by EMT's, who rushed in to take care of the once hybrid villain.

"Are you ok?" Kendall asked, finally finding his voice after a chaotic couple of seconds.

"I'm fine, it's just a scratch. What about you?" James replied, looking on the holes in Kendall's shoulder.

"I'll be fine. They'll heal" Kendall replied, the two of them now getting to their feet. As they did so, they saw Carlos and Logan rushing up to them.

"Are you two ok?" Logan asked, causing them both to nod.

"We're good. What about you?" Kendall asked, causing Logan and Carlos to let out a sigh.

"I'm just glad the cure worked" Logan stated, looking over to where Mr Diamond was situated. The EMT's were running all sorts of tests to make sure he was ok. "There was a second there when I thought it wasn't going to work" Logan continued, causing both James and Kendall to nod as they let out a sigh.

Looking out onto the city, James felt like this was the first time he could relax in what felt like ages.

Still, there was that small part of his brain that knew this story wasn't over.

Not just yet.

* * *

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Kendall asked as he and James sat in a hospital waiting room a few hours after the battle on the rooftop. As expected, Mr Diamond had been rushed into hospital, where all sorts of tests and procedures were run on him to make sure he was ok.

The cure Logan had given him had been described as crude, but effective, something the doctor didn't take too very well, and the doctors had promised James that they'd do whatever they could to try and combat this properly before asking him to wait in the waiting room while they finished up.

Carlos and Logan had offered to stay with him, but James knew how busy the two of them must have been, especially Carlos with everything that had just happened. Instead, just he and Kendall waited until James could properly see his dad, something that Kendall was asking him if he wanted to do.

"I have to do this Kendall. With everything that happened and with what he said at the end of the tape about keeping me in the dark so that I don't suffer more and then lying about his diagnosis, I need to know why" James replied, causing Kendall to nod as he squeezed the brunet's hand.

"Alright. You know that I'm here if you need me right. Whatever you want" Kendall responded, causing James to smile softly at him before leaning his head onto Kendall's shoulder.

"I know, and I love you for that" James stated, before letting out a sigh. "But I think I need to do this alone" James continued, causing Kendall to nod, turning his head to place a kiss onto James' forehead. "Mr Diamond, you can see him now," A nurse said, causing James to slowly push himself up from the chair.

"I'm here if you need me," Kendall said once again, causing James to return the kiss on his forehead before heading down the corridor. The walk to the room definitely seemed like a daunting one, but James was comforted by the fact that Kendall was only a few metres away and ready to do anything for him.

As James arrived at the room, he let out a sigh before walking into it, trying his best to keep the already forming tears at bay. The sight that greeted him was his father laid in a hospital bed, completely human, and hooked up to a bunch of wires and an IV drip, and James didn't know whether to be relieved or horrified.

While his father was back in human form, something James was definitely relieved about, this was the experience that James had worried about the most, his father hospitalised. The brunet was quick to wipe the tears from his eyes as he approached the bed, sitting in the seat right next to it.

"Dad, it's me, James," the brunet said, feeling the need to grab his father's hand.

"James?" Henry croaked from the bed, startling the brunet slightly. His tone was so fragile, so frail that James felt like it was going to break at any second. "I wasn't expecting you to come" Mr Diamond continued, causing more tears to drop from James' eyes. "I've done some terrible things and I've been so horrible to you after the last few years. I'm so sorry" Mr Diamond finished, tears drop crawling down his cheek.

"Why Dad? Why were you so horrible to me? All I wanted was for you to be ok, and I felt like you were shutting me out every chance you had. Why?" James asked, his own tears now flowing freely as he struggled to get the words it. It only got worse when Henry's hands tightened around his own.

"I saw how you were after the death of your mother; you were distraught, and it sent you into a really bad place. I didn't want to do that to you again. I thought if I could distance myself from you now, then when I passed, it wouldn't have been so difficult for you and that you wouldn't have had to go through that pain again" Henry explained, causing more tears to fall from both their eyes. "I wanted to save you from the pain again. I love you, James, so much and I'd do anything to spare you from going through that again" Henry finished, squeezing James' hand once more as they both sobbed.

James' brain had stopped processing completely at what his father said, with him not being to piece together everything. A couple of minutes must have gone by with James not saying anything, as Henry spoke up again.

"James, please talk to me" Henry pleaded, and James could hear the fear in his voice. Finally, finding the right words, James let out a sigh before speaking.

"That's probably the stupidest thing I've ever heard," James said first, wiping the tears from his eyes before he continued to speak. "I love you dad, and whatever you say, or whatever you do, I'm still going to be grief-stricken when you die. You could have come to be about this, and spoken to me about everything. At least that way, I could have tried to prepare myself for it. But whatever happens, I'm always going to love you. You're my father" James finished, causing Henry's grip on him to tighten.

"Your father needs some rest now," A nurse said from the door, causing James to look over at her in shock. He hadn't even noticed her arrived, but the sad look she held on her face told him that she'd heard at least a bit of their conversation.

"I'm going to come back tomorrow to check on you, as soon as I'm allowed to. Ok?" James stated, causing Henry to nod from the bed, wiping the tears from his eyes.

"I love you," Henry said, causing James to smile as he squeezed Henry's hand once more before letting go.

"I love you too dad"

* * *

"So, how it go?" Kendall asked as James approached him in the waiting room.

Without saying anything, James wrapped his arms around the blond, pulling him into a massive hug.

"I love you so much," James said, causing Kendall to let out a soft chuckle as he returned the hug with as much vigour as James.

"I love you too" Kendall responded, causing James to feel the most at peace he'd felt in a while.

Everything was slowly starting to look up despite all the crazy stuff that had gone on, but a small part of James knew that he probably should expect that in his life from now on. Dating a superhero was certainly going to add some crazy to anyone's life and yet James couldn't be more content with that.

In Kendall, James had found the one and he knew together, they could face anything.

* * *

 **So there we have it! The final chapter! Kendall fought Mr Diamond as expected and we finally got some sort of reason as to why James' dad had been a dick all this time! I hope you all enjoyed not only this chapter but the whole story as it's certainly been a long and eventful journey!**

 **I want to say a massive thank you to RainbowDiamonds, Winterschild11, Guest and EpicallyObsessed for not only reviewing the last chapter but every one of them! Your constant support and kind words always mean so much to me! You all seemed to appreciate Jealous Kendall, which I thought was pretty funny and you all seemed to agree that James just needed to stay put and follow orders! I thought it would be a little cliche to have him turn up and get injured, so I went for something a little bit different! Aka, him just having to turn around and go back!**

 **So, as of next week, Colony will be continuing, which was the Westworld-esque story! I'm also going to say now that that story will only probably be short, about 10-15 ish chapters so I hope you stick around and give it a read!**

 **I hope that you're all staying safe and feeling alright amongst everything that is going on, and I will see you next Monday! But until then, and for the final time in this story,**

 **TTFN 😀❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄❄**


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